Hock Cliff near Fretherne exposes an early Sinemurian succession of limestone, shale and mudstone beside the Severn. Ammonites, curved oysters and echinoderm remains record a varied Jurassic sea floor, while the tidal shore, slippery rocks and changing path conditions require careful planning and permission checks.
FIND FREQUENCY: ♦♦♦ – Shells and fossil-bearing loose rocks are well documented, but mud cover and preservation vary.
CHILDREN: ♦ – Tidal mud, slippery rock and cliff falls make the foreshore unsuitable for young children.
ACCESS: ♦♦ – A walk from Fretherne leads towards the river; check current path and bridge conditions before visiting.
TYPE: – Early Jurassic cliff and foreshore, with Blue Lias limestone and mudstone passing towards Charmouth facies.
DIRECTIONS
♦ From the A38, head to Frampton-on-Severn and continue towards the canal crossing, then follow the road towards Fretherne.
♦ The established approach is through Fretherne towards the signed footpath near the church leading to the river. Use the marked public route and observe current notices; do not park beside or obstruct a farm gate. Arrange lawful parking locally rather than assuming an informal roadside space is available.
♦ At the Severn Way junction, check current route signs before continuing beside Hock Cliff. A parish notice in May 2024 recorded a landslip-damaged footbridge and temporary closure of EAR52 near Smiths Wood. It does not establish the route’s present condition: confirm the bridge and path are open before setting out, and never bypass a barrier.
♦ A path reaching the river does not grant permission to descend the bank or remove fossils. Confirm the authorised shore approach and collecting terms before leaving the path.
♦ Reference point: 51.77845°N, 2.39236°W. This marks the locality, not a verified parking place or safe descent.
FOSSIL HUNTING
Hock Cliff has a well-documented early Jurassic fauna, but its fossils are concentrated unevenly through the succession. Grey mudstones alternate with hard limestone bands, and much of the historically studied material came from naturally detached pieces on the shore. The most recognisable shell is Gryphaea arcuata, the curved oyster often called a devil’s toenail. Both valves are commonly preserved together. Especially useful marker horizons are Bed 12 and a concentration about 0.3 m below the top of Bed 15, using the modern measured-section numbering.
Brachiopods provide another way to distinguish horizons. Piarorhynchia juvensis is abundant in the mudstones of Bed 15, whereas Cuneirhynchia oxynoti is concentrated in the yellow-weathering limestone of Bed 28. The latter can be conspicuous among fallen blocks at the eastern end and also contains ammonites, nautiloids and bivalves. Other limestones are often comparatively poor in fossils, with richer patches on their upper surfaces or beside large shells and driftwood. A loose fossil cannot be assigned a bed simply from the part of the beach where it lies.
Ammonites include Vermiceras scylla low in the section, Charmasseiceras charmassei in several lower and middle horizons, and pyritised Arnioceras in Beds 19a–c. The upper Yellow Limestone has yielded Arietites bucklandi, Coroniceras lyra and Arnioceras ceratitoides. Many ammonites are immature, crushed or imperfectly preserved. Historically recorded micromorphs Canavarites and Pseudotropites are specialist finds from the eastern part of the locality, rather than ordinary expectations for a visit.
Small crinoid columnals and echinoid debris are much more frequent than complete animals. Isocrinus psilonoti and Miocidaris lobatum are characteristic elements; echinoid spines are concentrated at the base of Bed 19c. Rare articulated echinoderms occur in shell-rich limestone lenses associated with rapid burial. Reptile material is usually isolated bone: the measured log records a worn ichthyosaur vertebra in Bed 9c and a plesiosaur rib in Bed 13a. Acrodus teeth, a Hybodus tooth and fragmentary chimaeroid material are also documented. Photograph any potentially significant specimen and its position before preparation or movement.
Less frequent finds recorded from the locality include the solitary coral Montlivaltia haimei, the belemnite Nannobelus acutus, decapod crustaceans, encrusting bryozoans and small pyritic gastropods and bivalves. The chimaeroid record includes spines assigned to Metopacanthus granulatus. Foraminifera and holothurian sclerites make the mudstones important for specialist microfossil research, with their minute structures normally requiring specialist preparation and microscopy. These locality-wide records do not all have an established individual bed assignment.
Current permission to remove material from the exact shore parcel has not been established. A public footpath and past fossil-hunting visits do not themselves authorise removal or working attached beds. Use this geological information for identification and observation while checking the present access and collecting terms.
A chronological record of fossil discoveries, geological research and scientific milestones at Hock Cliff.
1815 – Classic bivalve type material
Sowerby named the form subsequently treated as Gryphaea arcuata incurva and the species subsequently called Antiquilima antiquata using material from Hock Cliff.
1822 – Early description of the section
George Cumberland published the earliest site description.
1842 – Cardinia specimens described
Samuel Stutchbury described three nominal Cardinia species from the locality: Cardinia cuneata, Cardinia ovalis and Cardinia imbricata. Their later illustration does not independently validate all three names.
1851–1852 – An inarticulate brachiopod described
Davidson described the large brachiopod later discussed as Discinisca townshendi (historically Orbicula townshendi), initially attaching an incorrect Oxford Clay provenance.
1853 – Fauna and microfossils discussed
Brodie published a short account; early work on the rich microfauna began well before modern micropalaeontological terminology.
1883 – Coloured geological sections published
W. C. Lucy published a fuller site description with coloured sections.
1908 – First detailed numbered log
Linsdall Richardson published a detailed stratigraphical section. The historical numbering runs down the succession and differs from the later modern log.
1910 – Early age interpretation revised
Richardson revised his earlier broad age interpretation, still including possible topmost Angulata Zone strata, an attribution subsequently challenged.
1922 – No strata below Bucklandi Zone recognised
A. E. Trueman reported that recent observations found no beds older than the Bucklandi Zone in the exposed succession.
1934 – Expanded faunal account
Henderson documented the fauna in greater detail, while retaining essentially Richardson’s log. The account is generally cited as 1934, although some bibliographies give 1935.
1954 – A historical ammonite reinterpreted
Donovan reconsidered a large Hock Cliff ammonite previously illustrated as Arietites bisulcatus, referring it to Coroniceras cf. vercingetorix. The qualified identification remains important when comparing historical collections.
1954–1967 – Brachiopods investigated
Derek Ager figured and sectioned material of Piarorhynchia juvensis and Cuneirhynchia oxynoti from Hock Cliff.
1968 – Gryphaea type and evolution studied
Anthony Hallam refigured the holotype of Gryphaea arcuata incurva and studied the unusually frequent preservation of joined valves at Hock Cliff.
1975 – Historical Cardinia material refigured
C. P. Palmer refigured the site’s nominal Cardinia species described in 1842.
1987 – Wider estuary conservation designation revised
The Upper Severn Estuary SSSI notification incorporated the former New Grounds, Noose and Hock Cliff sites within a revised estuarine boundary. The designation recognised internationally important habitats and birdlife in the wider estuary.
1988–1989 – Crinoid evolution documented
Michael Simms discussed material transitional between Isocrinus psilonoti and Isocrinus tuberculatus and described the local crinoid fauna.
1992 – Holothurian microfossils studied
Paul Gilliland published a stratigraphical summary and detailed study of the holothurian sclerites, including new morphospecies based on site material.
1993–1999 – Oyster material contributes to evolutionary research
Hock Cliff oyster material was used in studies of Gryphaea evolution by Johnson and by Jones and Gould, as recorded in the later geological synthesis. These studies extended the scientific role of the locality’s oyster collections beyond identification of individual beds.
1999 and 2002 – Section remeasured
New measurements distinguished 54 bed and sub-bed rows, including strata omitted from earlier logs, and clarified the early Sinemurian age.
2004 – Modern geological synthesis published
A detailed geological synthesis integrated the revised log, ammonite zonation, exceptional fauna and evidence for the transition towards Charmouth Mudstone conditions.
2021 – Mineralised burrows analysed
Connor Brolly, John Parnell and Xueying Wang analysed pyritised burrows from Hock Cliff as part of a three-locality study. Enrichment in selenium, copper and lead relative to the host sediment helped demonstrate how burrowed marine deposits can concentrate trace metals.
2024 – Landslip damages a riverside footbridge
A landslip at Hock Cliff led to an emergency temporary closure of footpath EAR52 on the Severn Way near Smiths Wood while the damaged footbridge required repair. An extension was announced in May; that dated notice does not establish the route’s current condition.
GEOLOGY
The measured cliff and foreshore section at Hock Cliff is early Sinemurian. It spans more than 17 m of marine limestone and mudstone belonging to the upper Blue Lias succession and its transition towards the Charmouth Mudstone Formation, both within the Lias Group. The lowest approximately 1.5 m is placed in the Rotiforme Subzone, while the Yellow Limestone near the top proves the Lyra Subzone. The intervening succession, more than 14 m thick, was assigned provisionally to the Bucklandi Subzone in the modern GCR account.
The lower beds show repeated changes between pale, burrowed mudstones, thin dark laminated shales and limestone. Their contrasts record changes in bottom-water oxygenation and sediment supply. The darker laminated beds have little evidence of animals living within the sediment; the paler mudstones carry burrows and locally rich bottom-dwelling faunas. Above Bed 14, the regular alternation becomes less distinct and limestone bands are more widely separated, illustrating the transition towards muddier conditions. The sources do not justify drawing a new, exact formation boundary at a convenient numbered bed.
Small anticlines complicate the outcrop: one occurs centrally and an asymmetric fold lies towards the eastern end. The western half is nearly horizontal, while the beds east of the central fold dip gently eastwards, bringing the highest strata into the eastern exposures. Shell erosion and burrowed surfaces show interruptions in sediment accumulation, while some shelly and crinoidal lenses fill shallow scours and preserve animals buried rapidly.
A limestone ledge is not necessarily the richest fossil horizon. Some shells and echinoderms are concentrated in shallow limestone lenses or on bed surfaces rather than distributed evenly through the rock. The lenses can fill scours up to about 0.15 m deep, with rapidly buried material preserving articulated remains. Elsewhere, worn and bored oyster valves record longer exposure at the sea floor. The combination of these preservation styles provides a more useful picture than treating all hard bands as equivalent collecting beds.
The contrast between robust limestone and softer mudrock also controls the modern shore: erosion exposes resistant ledges while weaker layers weather back or become concealed under estuarine mud. Detached blocks can travel away from their original bed, especially on a tidal river margin. Reliable geological records therefore distinguish fossils observed in a known layer from loose finds. The modern measured section uses numbers increasing upwards, whereas Richardson’s historical log numbers downwards; confusing those schemes can put a specimen in the wrong part of the succession.
The measured succession, fossil horizons and historical bed-number schemes at Hock Cliff.
LIAS GROUP
Blue Lias Formation
The section begins in the Blue Lias Formation and passes upwards into mudstone-dominated transitional beds. The 29 numbered beds below form one local measured succession, crossing the transition rather than all belonging to an undivided Blue Lias unit.
Charmouth Mudstone Formation
The upper part approaches and includes basal Charmouth Mudstone facies in the GCR interpretation. Limestone spacing increases above Bed 14, but the measured account does not fix an unambiguous formal boundary to one numbered bed. No formal member subdivision is established for this exposure.
Measured section: youngest to oldest
Numbers are those of Simms’ 1999 and 2002 measurements, published in 2004. Parenthetical historical numbers are Richardson’s 1908 scheme, also used by Henderson. Individual thicknesses describe this measured section; Bed 1 is only the thickness seen and Bed 27c is approximate.
Bed 29 (0.45 m)
Mudstone, yellowish-weathered (Bed 1).
Bed 28 (0.15 m)
Yellow Limestone. Limestone, grey, shelly, weathering yellow (Bed 2). Arietites bucklandi, Coroniceras lyra, Arnioceras ceratitoides. Cuneirhynchia oxynoti abundant, Cenoceras sp., Plagiostoma giganteum, Gryphaea arcuata, Chlamys.
Bed 27c (c. 1.2 m)
Mudstone, grey- to yellow-weathered.
Bed 27b (0.22 m)
Paper shale, dark grey-brown, well laminated. Fish debris.
Bed 27a (0.45 m)
Mudstone, grey, shaly.
Bed 26 (0.20 m)
Limestone, impersistent, grey, earthy.
Bed 25e (1.50 m)
Mudstone, grey, shaly.
Bed 25d (0.40 m)
Mudstone, dark grey, shelly.
Bed 25c (0.30 m)
Mudstone, grey, shaly, passing downwards into the next unit.
Bed 25b (0.10 m)
Shale, dark grey, passing downwards into the next unit.
Bed 25a (0.10 m)
Mudstone, grey, shaly.
Bed 24 (0.12 m)
Limestone, impersistent.
Bed 23 (0.65 m)
Mudstone, grey, shaly, with pyritised burrows.
Bed 22 (0.15 m)
Limestone, fairly persistent.
Bed 21c (1.80 m)
Mudstone, grey, shaly.
Bed 21b (0.08 m)
Shale, dark grey.
Bed 21a (0.65 m)
Mudstone, blue-grey, with occasional limestone lenticles.
Bed 20 (0.20 m)
Limestone, persistent (Bed 10). In places with an abundant benthic fauna including Gryphaea, Plagiostoma, Antiquilima, Chlamys, Oxytoma, Isocrinus and Miocidaris.
Bed 19c (0.60 m)
Mudstone, grey, shaly, with burrow mottling towards top. Spines of Miocidaris lobatum abundant at base.
Bed 19b (0.10 m)
Mudstone, dark grey, shaly.
Bed 19a (0.65 m)
Mudstone, grey, shaly, with burrow mottling towards base. Hybodus tooth. Pyritised Arnioceras sp. common throughout beds 19a–c.
Bed 18 (0.16 m)
Limestone, persistent (Bed 12). Eucoroniceras sinemuriense.
Bed 17d (0.11 m)
Clay, dark grey, shaly. Pyritised multi-costate Coroniceras.
Bed 17c (0.36 m)
Clay, grey, shaly, with occasional shelly limestone lenses.
Bed 17b (0.12 m)
Limestone, impersistent, lenticular. Fossiliferous on upper surface.
Bed 17a (0.72 m)
Clay, grey, shaly. Charmasseiceras charmassei.
Bed 16 (0.20 m)
Limestone, persistent (Bed 14).
Bed 15 (0.60 m)
Mudstone, grey, with occasional shelly limestone lenticles (Bed 15). Charmasseiceras charmassei. Piarorhynchia juvensis abundant throughout. Gryphaea arcuata abundant 0.3 m below top, commonly as intact specimens. Zeilleria sp.
Bed 14 (0.12 m)
Limestone, fairly persistent (Bed 16). Cenoceras striatus.
Bed 13c (0.72 m)
Mudstone, grey, shaly, with abundant, dark, burrow mottling. Charmasseiceras charmassei, abundant Piarorhynchia juvensis, occasional bio-eroded Gryphaea valves, Pleurotomaria anglica, Oxytoma inequivalvis, Camptonectes sp., Isocrinus psilonoti.
Bed 13b (0.05 m)
Shale, dark grey, very well-laminated. Many pyritised burrows.
Bed 13a (0.35 m)
Mudstone, blue-grey. Oxytoma inequivalvis, intact Gryphaea arcuata and plesiosaur rib.
Bed 12 (0.12 m)
Limestone, rather constant, tabular (Bed 18). Abundant Gryphaea arcuata. Cenoceras striatus.
Bed 11 (0.36 m)
Mudstone, blue-grey, darker and more shaly in top 0.12 m. Abundant shell debris and darker Diplocraterion burrows. Charmasseiceras charmassei.
Bed 10 (0.08 m)
Limestone, rather impersistent (more so than beds 6 or 8). Charmasseiceras charmassei.
Bed 9c (0.28 m)
Mudstone, blue-grey, shaly, darker towards base and with paler burrow mottling. Worn ichthyosaur vertebra and bio-eroded Gryphaea. Passes down into;
Bed 9b (0.08 m)
Shale, dark grey, very well-laminated, with conspicuous jointing and forming prominent break in shale slope. Charmasseiceras charmassei. Passes down into;
Bed 9a (0.22 m)
Mudstone, blue-grey, becoming darker towards top. Burrow mottling in upper part and abundant dark Diplocraterion burrows in the lower part. Gryphaea arcuata.
Bed 8 (0.12 m)
Limestone, rather impersistent and forming irregular lenticular masses.
Bed 7e (0.09 m)
Mudstone, fairly dark-grey, very shaly. Gryphaea common and commonly highly bio-eroded.
Bed 7d (0.05 m)
Shale, dark-grey, well laminated.
Bed 7c (0.08 m)
Mudstone, blue-grey, shaly. Gryphaea common and commonly highly bio-eroded.
Bed 7b (0.04 m)
Mudstone, dark grey, shaly. Forms conspicuous break on shore.
Bed 7a (0.30 m)
Mudstone, blue-grey, shaly. Charmasseiceras, Gryphaea common, sometimes bio-eroded.
Bed 6 (0.12 m)
Limestone, rather impersistent and forming irregular lenticular masses (Bed 20). Driftwood.
Bed 5c (0.15 m)
Shale, fairly dark-grey. Charmasseiceras, Gryphaea common.
Bed 5b (0.03 m)
Shale, dark grey, well laminated, forming break on shore.
Bed 5a (0.30 m)
Mudstone, blue-grey, shaly, with occasional limestone lenticles and nodules. Crinoid and echinoid debris common, particularly in limestone lenticles. Pyritised and crushed 0.3 m-diameter Coroniceras cf. rotiforme.
Bed 4 (0.10 m)
Limestone (Bed 22).
Bed 3c (0.25 m)
Mudstone, blue-grey, shaly.
Bed 3b (0.10 m)
Shale, dark grey, very well-laminated, particularly in upper part. Coroniceras ? rotiforme, Vermiceras scylla.
Bed 3a (0.22 m)
Mudstone, blue-grey, shaly. Crinoid and echinoid debris common in shelly patches.
Bed 2 (0.25 m)
Limestone, grey, persistent, forming conspicuous wide ledge at northern end of cliff at low tide (Bed 24). Upper 0.05 m bluish and rather softer and contains common Vermiceras scylla.
Bed 1 (0.45 m seen)
Mudstone, grey, fossiliferous, exposed only at northernmost end of foreshore during low tides (Bed 25). Vermiceras scylla, Gryphaea arcuata, Camptonectes sp., Isocrinus psilonoti, Miocidaris spines.
Historical log reconciliation
Modern Beds 1–7 correspond broadly to historical Beds 25–19. More than 1 m represented by modern Beds 8–11 was absent from the older descriptions. Modern Beds 12–22 match historical Beds 18–8 fairly well. The distinctive modern Bed 28 is historical Bed 2; the intervening modern Beds 23–27 cannot be matched securely to historical Beds 3–7. A historical bed number therefore needs its author’s scheme stated.
Ammonite constraints
Vermiceras scylla in Beds 1, 2 and 3b and Coroniceras cf. rotiforme in Bed 5a establish a Rotiforme Subzone age for the lowest approximately 1.5 m. Coroniceras lyra in Bed 28 establishes the Lyra Subzone for at least the top 0.6 m. The intervening more than 14 m is assumed in the GCR interpretation to belong to the Bucklandi Subzone; it is not fully resolved into individual ammonite biohorizons.
Depositional and preservation detail
Nine persistent limestone bands and a further six impersistent bands can be followed in the exposure. Shell-rich lenses commonly have a flat top and irregular base and occupy shallow scours, locally 1–2 m across and up to 0.15 m deep. Rapid infilling explains occasional articulated echinoderms; heavily bored and worn oyster valves at other levels indicate pauses in burial.
Additional ammonite records and historical identifications
A specimen figured by Wright as Arietites bisulcatus was reinterpreted by Donovan in 1954 as Coroniceras cf. vercingetorix; the qualification is retained. Small ammonites assigned to Canavarites and Pseudotropites are recorded from the eastern part, apparently high in the section. The 2004 account reported more than 30 of the former and only a few of the latter, without individual bed assignments.
Historical shell and brachiopod material
Hock material underlies the historical names Gryphaea arcuata incurva and Antiquilima antiquata, as well as Stutchbury’s nominal Cardinia cuneata, Cardinia ovalis and Cardinia imbricata. These records do not imply that every historical name is accepted unchanged today. The large inarticulate brachiopod discussed as Discinisca townshendi, historically Orbicula townshendi, was initially given an incorrect Oxford Clay provenance.
Distinguishing the brachiopod horizons
The measured modern Bed 15 records Zeilleria at genus level. The faunal discussion also reports Zeilleria perforata from Bed 15 and from Richardson’s Bed 18. Richardson 18 corresponds broadly to modern Bed 12; it must not be confused with modern Bed 18, the Eucoroniceras sinemuriense limestone.
Echinoderms beyond the measured bed list
The site has yielded disarticulated and occasionally articulated crinoids, echinoids, starfish and brittle stars. Transitional crinoid material between Isocrinus psilonoti and Isocrinus tuberculatus has been studied; this does not assign a separate pure-species occurrence to an unrecorded bed. The 2004 synthesis counted three crinoid species, at least three echinoid species, three asteroids and two ophiuroids. It mentioned material assigned to Terminaster and Ophiocantha as undescribed at that time. The 2004 account described them as the earliest known representatives of Zoroasteridae and Laemophiurinae, respectively. That is the historical assessment of their significance, without establishing their present taxonomic status or an unchanged earliest-known record.
Other body fossils and microfossils
Local records include the solitary coral Montlivaltia haimei, the belemnite Nannobelus acutus, fish teeth chiefly assigned to Acrodus, and chimaeroid fin-spine and partial head-spine material assigned to Metopacanthus granulatus. Decapods, encrusting bryozoans and small pyritic gastropods and bivalves are also recorded. Foraminifera occur in several mudstones. Gilliland’s study recognised at least six holothurian sclerite morphospecies at the site, with two based on local material; the individual names and bed assignments are not supplied by the later summary.
Trace fossils and pyritisation
Chondrites is reported at several levels, while conspicuous Diplocraterion burrows occur in Beds 9a and 11. These traces record activity in the sediment rather than skeletal remains. A 2021 study analysed pyritised burrows from Hock Cliff and two other sites, finding enrichment in selenium, copper and lead relative to the enclosing sediment. This research concerns mineralised burrow fills and does not identify a new Hock bed or fossil species.
References
C. Brolly, J. Parnell and X. Wang (2021), The sequestration of trace metals preserved in pyritized burrows, Sedimentary Geology 421, 105959. Institutional record and abstract.
M. J. Simms (2004), Hock Cliff, Fretherne, Gloucestershire, in British Lower Jurassic Stratigraphy, Geological Conservation Review 30, pp. 164–170. Original published chapter.
B. M. Cox, M. G. Sumbler and H. C. Ivimey-Cook (1999), A formational framework for the Lower Jurassic of England and Wales (onshore area), BGS Research Report RR/99/01. Report.
BGS Lexicon entries for Blue Lias and Charmouth Mudstone.
SAFETY
The Severn can reach the foot of Hock Cliff and cut off the foreshore. Check current local tides, river levels, weather and bore information before a permitted visit, and do not enter the shore when a bore is expected. Keep the return route in sight and leave well before rising water threatens it; low water alone is not a guarantee of safe access.
Mud-covered or sloping limestone ledges and algae can be slippery. Deep soft mud and channels are hazardous, so stay on firm authorised ground and do not wade or cross mudflats to reach isolated exposures. Strong currents make entering the river dangerous.
Keep clear of cliff faces, overhangs, fresh slips and fallen material below unstable ground. The 2024 damage to the EAR52 footbridge shows that the riverside route can change after a landslip; check the current condition rather than assuming a past route remains usable.
Avoid visiting alone, carry a charged phone and tell someone your return plan. Children and dogs need close supervision away from the cliff and river; the exposed shore is unsuitable for young children. If someone is trapped in tidal mud or water, call 999 and ask for the Coastguard.
EQUIPMENT
For observation, take a hand lens, camera, scale, notebook and current local tide and river information. Sturdy footwear with good grip is important on firm rock, but it does not remove the risks from slippery mud or a rising tide.
If collecting loose material is expressly allowed, use padded rigid boxes and labels, and keep fragile shale supported. A bag of heavy blocks should never compromise the return walk. Do not assume permission to use a hammer or chisel on the foreshore beds or cliff.
CLEANING AND TREATING
Photograph lawfully collected specimens before cleaning and keep any counterpart. Begin with a soft dry brush. Hard limestone can fracture through ammonites and shells rather than around them, so avoid forceful splitting or levering; controlled mechanical work under magnification is a specialist option for suitable pieces.
Pyritic ammonites and pyritised burrows may be fragile or already deteriorating. Keep them dry and separate from damp wrapping, and seek advice if pale powdering, cracks or a sulphurous smell develop. Do not soak pyritic material, use household acids or bleach, or apply routine varnish.
Crinoid and other echinoderm remains can retain important associations within their matrix. Preserve articulated or unusual specimens unprepared, record their position and seek specialist advice before attempting further extraction.
IDENTIFY YOUR FINDS
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FURTHER READING
Hock Cliff measured section and fauna, GCR 30, pp. 164–170
BGS formational framework for the Lower Jurassic
Pyritised burrows and trace metals: research including Hock Cliff
Arlingham parish notices: check current route information
ACCESS RIGHTS
Hock Cliff lies within the wider Severn Estuary conservation setting. The historic Upper Severn Estuary citation incorporated the former New Grounds, Noose and Hock Cliff sites; this is not proof of a separate present-day geological SSSI or a grant of collecting rights. Historic Upper Severn Estuary citation.
Check the current route with the rights-of-way authority and obtain the relevant owner or manager’s permission for shore access and fossil removal. The 2024 EAR52 notice concerned a particular damaged-footbridge section near Smiths Wood; it neither proves a continuing closure of the whole locality nor establishes that the bridge has reopened.
A public path and historic collecting visits do not authorise working attached beds or removing loose material from adjacent land. Until the collecting terms are clear, observe and photograph from a lawful, stable position. Respect current barriers and signs and leave wildlife and river-margin habitats undisturbed.
It is important to follow our ‘Code of Conduct’ when collecting fossils or visiting any site. Please also read our ‘Terms and Conditions‘
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