Devil's Hole, Morville
Also within
Condition (Natural England)
| Unit | Feature | Condition | Area (ha) | Assessed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SO671929 | — | Favourable | 2.89 | 2017-10-16 |
Geology & landscape
Geological Period: Devonian, Silurian · Rock Type: Sandstone
Description
Area, 2.9 ha. 7.1 ac. Description This section through rocks of the Old Red Sandstone includes four horizons which are important sources of fossils of primitive fish. Their varying faunal content charts the sequence of evolutionary changes that occurred through the passage from the Downtonian to the Dittonian and thus the Silurian to the Devonian. This is an interesting and critical period and the changes in faunal assemblages which occurred are a reflection of the geographical and ecological changes which were going on at the time. Recently collected fossil material from this site is providing important new evidence in several fields of vertebrate palaeontology. Better preserved material is found here of species previously described from much poorer specimens found elsewhere. This material is important in the study of the morphology of some of the known fossil fish whilst a number of new species await description. This is an important site for studies of primitive fish crossing the Silurian Devonian boundary.