Holly Lane SSSI
Encyclopedia
Holly Lane SSSI is a 0.5 hectare
geological Site of Special Scientific Interest near the village of Walton St. Mary, North Somerset
, notified in 1990.
This Geological Conservation Review
site shows deep subaerial sands and breccias burying a fossil cliff, shoreplatform,
wave-cut notch and cave. The sands are of Pleistocene age and thought to be aeolian (windblown) coversands. They contain recycled foraminifera (eroded from older rocks) and open-ground terrestrial mollusca
. Fossils of mammalian fauna include horse
, bear
, wolf, fox
and several rodent species.
Hectare
The hectare is a metric unit of area defined as 10,000 square metres , and primarily used in the measurement of land. In 1795, when the metric system was introduced, the are was defined as being 100 square metres and the hectare was thus 100 ares or 1/100 km2...
geological Site of Special Scientific Interest near the village of Walton St. Mary, North Somerset
North Somerset
North Somerset is a unitary authority in England. Its area covers part of the ceremonial county of Somerset but it is administered independently of the non-metropolitan county. Its administrative headquarters is in the town hall in Weston-super-Mare....
, notified in 1990.
This Geological Conservation Review
Geological Conservation Review
The Geological Conservation Review is produced by the UK's Joint Nature Conservation Committee and is designed to identify those sites of national and international importance needed to show all the key scientific elements of the geological and geomorphological features of Britain...
site shows deep subaerial sands and breccias burying a fossil cliff, shoreplatform,
wave-cut notch and cave. The sands are of Pleistocene age and thought to be aeolian (windblown) coversands. They contain recycled foraminifera (eroded from older rocks) and open-ground terrestrial mollusca
Mollusca
The Mollusca , common name molluscs or mollusksSpelled mollusks in the USA, see reasons given in Rosenberg's ; for the spelling mollusc see the reasons given by , is a large phylum of invertebrate animals. There are around 85,000 recognized extant species of molluscs. Mollusca is the largest...
. Fossils of mammalian fauna include horse
Horse
The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...
, bear
Bear
Bears are mammals of the family Ursidae. Bears are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans, with the pinnipeds being their closest living relatives. Although there are only eight living species of bear, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats throughout the Northern...
, wolf, fox
Fox
Fox is a common name for many species of omnivorous mammals belonging to the Canidae family. Foxes are small to medium-sized canids , characterized by possessing a long narrow snout, and a bushy tail .Members of about 37 species are referred to as foxes, of which only 12 species actually belong to...
and several rodent species.