Crag Farm Pit, Sudbourne
Also within
Condition (Natural England)
| Unit | Feature | Condition | Area (ha) | Assessed |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TM428523 | — | Favourable | 4.81 | 2023-03-06 |
Geology & landscape
Mining / Industrial: Quarry
Description
Area, 4.6 ha. 11.4 ac. Description The quarry at Crag Farm is an important geological site for the study of Coralline Crag and palaeoecology. It is probably the largest and most readily accessible Coralline Crag locality. Faces of the pit afford the best available exposure in the Coralline Crag sandwave facies. About 5 metres of crag is exposed showing well defined, large scale cross stratification a set thickness of up to two metres. Conspicuous calcite 'veins' are present which may be related to diagenetic removal of aragonitic material during a sub aerial solutional phase. The fauna at this site is notable for the occurrence of large, well preserved, colonies of the bryozoan 'Eschara' Pertusa, probably one of the few organisms able to colonise the mobile sand waves. Other, demonstrable in situ fauna, is rather rare at this locality although many species of bryozoan are represented by transported skeletal fragments.