Vale of Glamorgan · Wales
Fossil hunting at Dunraven Bay, Southerndown
Layered Lias limestone cliffs on the Glamorgan Heritage Coast, with ammonites, bivalves and brachiopods.
Representative photography of this stretch of coast, not a photograph of the site on a particular day.
What can you find?
- AmmonitesCoiled shells of extinct marine molluscs, the classic British fossil.Identify →
- BivalvesFossil shellfish with two matching valves, common on most marine sites.Identify →
- BrachiopodsTwo-shelled marine animals, abundant in limestone and chalk.Identify →
- BelemnitesBullet-shaped internal guards of squid-like Jurassic and Cretaceous animals.Identify →
- CrinoidsSea lilies, usually found as circular stem segments in limestone.Identify →
About the site
Dunraven Bay, also known as Southerndown, sits at the western end of the Glamorgan Heritage Coast. The cliffs show strikingly regular beds of Lower Jurassic limestone and shale, and the wave-cut platform and shingle produce ammonites, bivalves and brachiopods.
There is a heritage centre at the car park and the bay is a well-used educational site. As elsewhere, collect loose material rather than working the cliffs, which are high and shed rock frequently.
Planning a visit
- Geological period
- Early Jurassic (Blue Lias), around 200–195 million years old
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Suitable for children
- Yes, with supervision and attention to the tide and cliffs.
- Best time to go
- Low tide, especially after winter storms.
- Tides
- The Bristol Channel tidal range is very large here. Walking beneath the cliffs on a rising tide risks being cut off.
- Access
- Level access from the car park to the beach front; the foreshore is rock and shingle.
- Parking
- Pay and display car park at Dunraven Bay.
- Walking and terrain
- Beach immediately adjacent to the car park.
- Location type
- Beach, Cliff, Geological site
- Collecting
- Heritage Coast site. Collect loose material only and follow any on-site guidance; parts of the coast are SSSI.
Safety
- High limestone cliffs with regular rockfall — stay well away from the base.
- Very large tidal range and fast incoming tide.
- Slippery wave-cut platform.
What to bring
- Boots with grip
- Tide table
- Bag
- Hand lens