Sandford Lane Quarry

Site of Special Scientific Interest · 50.9580, -2.5298

Also within

Dorset County

Condition (Natural England)

Favourable (1)
UnitFeatureConditionArea (ha)Assessed
ST628177 Favourable 0.75 2012-03-08

Geology & landscape

Mining / Industrial: Quarry · Geological Period: Jurassic

Description

Area, 0.77 hectares 1.90 ac Description An internationally important geological site. The limestones of the Inferior Oolite exposed at Sandford Lane have yielded faunas essential to Middle Jurassic stratigraphic studies. Sandford can be taken as the British standard for part of the Upper Bajocian garantiana Zone. It is also the most important locality for the Middle Bajocian sauzei and laeviuscula Zones. The majority of European ammonite records from these two Zones were based on collections from the Sandford quarry. This site shows one of the most important of British sedimentary sequences.