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| Dorset
and East Devon Coast World Heritage Monitoring |
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| Image Gallery |
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GCR
Site: 814 High Peak
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| Interest: Mid Triassic fish, reptiles amphibia |
| GCR Block: Permian - Triassic Reptilia |
| SSSI: Ladram Bay to Sidmouth |
| Site Boundaries: Grid Reference SY 097848 to SY131873 |
| Date of Assessment: 28th August 2003 |
| Date from last assessment: unknown |
| Name of surveyor: Richard Edmonds and Chris Pamplin |
| Statement of Significance: |
| The cliffs below High Peak have yielded remains of Middle Triassic fossil fish, amphibians and reptiles. Specimens of the labyrinthodont Mastodonsaurus (including type material) and the rhynchosaur Rhynchosaurus are closely similar to forms from the Warwick and Bromsgrove areas in the Midlands, and allow correlation between the two. The remains from High Peak are disarticulated but well preserved, and fresh cliff falls will almost certainly yield more material. The best fauna of Middle Triassic fossil vertebrates in southern Britain. |
| Physical description: |
| The cliffs quickly rise to the high point of High Peak. The Mercia Mudstone cliffs are particularly shear. The Otter Sandstone rises from the foreshore and gives rise to the sea stacks towards Ladram Bay. At low spring tide, there is an extensive sandy beach and rocky reefs below High Cliff.. |
| Health and Safety: |
| The high cliffs west of Sidmouth are prone to cliff falls of all sizes. It is essential to visit this site at low tide and, wherever possible, stay well away from the cliffs. Boulders on the beach can be slippery, especially when wet. The rising tide floods the beach very quickly. |
| Access: |
| Access is easiest from Sidmouth around low tide. It is possible to walk through to Ladram Bay but only at low water as the tide floods the beaches quickly in this area. |
| Conservation Objectives, on site: |
| Maintain exposures and natural erosion rates. |
| Conservation Objectives, off site: |
| Record what is being found from the site |
| Success indicators: |
| The strata
are exposed Specimens are accessible. |
| Fixed Point photography: |
| Looking
west from Jacobs Ladder SY120869
and gallery of images Photomontage at low tide from the beach below High Peak `SY106864 |
| Scientific publications and ongoing research: |
| Unknown |
| Natural Change: |
| Continued small scale erosion |
| Man made change: |
| None |
| ENSIS unit summary: |
| Not completed |
| Comments: |
| Fragmentary
fossil bones were commonly seen in the channel lag depostits on the foreshore
and cliff exposures No evidence of any specimen collection |
| Other comments: |
| Sensitivity: Medium |
| Recommended survey period: |
| 1 to 2 years |
| Overall Assessment: |
| Favourable |
| Actions: |
| Promote recording of any specimens recovered by collectors or researchers |
| Related GCR Blocks: |
| 1839 Ladram Bay: Goastal Geomorphology |
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Comments
and discussion
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No comments have been submitted
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