Harwich Foreshore
Site of Special Scientific Interest
LocationEssex
Grid referenceTM 263320
InterestGeological
Area10.6 hectares
Notification1986
Location mapMagic Map

Harwich Foreshore is a 10.6-hectare (26-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Harwich in Essex.[1][2] It is a Geological Conservation Review site.[3]

This site exposes bands of ash at the base of London clay from explosive volcanoes in Scotland during the Eocene epoch around 50 million years ago. It also has many London clay fossils from the Eocene rainforest, including mammals such as Hyracotherium, the earliest ancestor of the horse. The site is important in the history of geology as fossils have been collected there for over 300 years.[4]

The site is a stretch of beach which is under water at high tide.

References

  1. ^ "Harwich Foreshore citation" (PDF). Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 3 July 2016.
  2. ^ "Map of Harwich Foreshore". Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 3 July 2016.
  3. ^ "Harwich (Tertiary Palaeobotany)". Joint Nature Conservation Committee. Retrieved 3 July 2016.
  4. ^ "Harwich Foreshore SSSI". The Essex Field Club. Retrieved 4 July 2016.
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51°56′28″N 1°17′28″E / 51.941°N 1.291°E / 51.941; 1.291

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