Katie’s Belemnite Bullet
Often found digging in the gravel at home, Rockwatcher Katie has discovered that her fabulous find is a Belemnite, a bullet-shaped part of an extinct squid that thrived in our ancient seas. Rockwatch Ambassador, Michael, confirms that Katie’s fossil, “is a piece of fairly large Jurassic Belemnite”. So, what’s a Belemnite? Belemnites were an extinct marine animal that looked very like a modern-day squid except that they also had an...
Solving the Mystery of Piotr’s Crystal Rock from Herne Bay
Rockwatcher Piotr was intrigued to learn more about the mixed-looking rock he found at Herne Bay East Cliff Beach in Kent, England. Describing the rock itself as ‘unusual’ and the location of the find as a bit of a ‘mystery’, Rockwatch Ambassador, Michael pieces together a number of clues to help identify the rock and its possible origins to help solve the mystery. Michael’s approach to identifying Piortr’s rock is rather like a...
Miriam’s Fascinating Flint Finds
Rockwatcher Miriam’s two flint fragment finds are the focus of the latest Fabulous Find feature. The first fragment, found in Bedford near Pavenham looks rather like fossilised fish scales, but Rockwatch Ambassador Michael has different ideas based on his knowledge of the geology of Bedfordshire. The area is north of an area called the Chalk Scarp where an abundance of flint is typically formed from chalk, accounting for its lightness...
Joshua’s Sea Snail on the Sea Shore
Fossil finder Joshua found this wonderful shell on a recent trip to the Barton Beds at Barton on Sea, in the south of England and sent in his find for identification. It turns out that the Barton Beds – as they are known – are home to more than 600 species of shells! Fossil hunters flock to the Barton Beds because it’s known to be a rich source of Gastopods, molluscs and sharks’ teeth so visitors are likely to go home with a fossil...
Could Ben have Discovered a New Carboniferous Crustacean Species?
On a recent family field trip to Berwick-Upon-Tweed in Northumberland, Rockwatcher Ben unearthed not one but two fossil finds from the same boulder. The first of these, probably a tooth, is fairly typical of the kind of fossil found on Northumberland’s beaches. With the geology of Berwick-Upon-Tweed being formed of Carboniferous rocks mostly comprised of sandstone and limestone, this area is known for brachiopods, crinoids, corals and...
Get your Rockstar 2021 Competition Entries in!
With more than a week left before the competition deadline, there’s still plenty of time for you to send us your geology inspired projects. Perhaps you’ve visited the Jurassic Coastline or one of the UK’s mountains ranges, or you’ve enjoyed a trip to a museum or visitor centre and found out about an area of interest. Maybe you’ve added some interesting rocks or fossils to your collection and have found out more about them. Whatever...