Selsey, East Beach
Also within
Condition (Natural England)
| Unit | Feature | Condition | Area (ha) | Assessed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SZ860925 | — | Unfavourable Declining | 1.74 | 2024-03-22 |
Climate exposure
This is about exposure to a nationwide pressure this habitat type carries — not a verdict on this site's own management.
Coastal habitats are exposed to sea-level rise and storm erosion. Where hard sea defences sit behind them, there's nowhere landward to retreat to — a squeeze that keeps compressing the habitat no matter how well it's managed.
Geology & landscape
Geological Feature: Raised Beach · Geological Period: Quaternary
Landscape processes: Coastal
Description
Area, 1.8 ha. 4.4 ac. Description The site at Selsey East Beach should be seen in conjunction with Selsey West Beach to be included within the Bracklesham Bay SSSI. Together they form a key Quaternary site for a sequence of freshwater and estuarine deposits of Ipswichian Interglacial age. Evidence from the sediments and the pollen and microfaunas they contain, indicates rapid climatic amelioration at the beginning of the interglacial and a marine transgression at about –1.8 metres OD in pollen zone IIb. At Selsey West Beach raised beach deposits overlying the estuarine sediments extend up to seven metres OD. The deposits at Selsey East Beach are of unique importance in providing Pleistocene vertebrate faunas from the very early part of the Ipswichian Interglacial. The faunas include beaver, straight tusked elephant, an extinct rhinoceros Dicerorhinus hemitoechus, hippopotamus, horse and European pond tortoise. Much potential exists for vertebrate research at this locality particularly with regard to stratigraphy and pollen zonation.