Fossil Hunting in Kent

Kent is one of the best areas in the UK for fossil hunting, with a wide range of productive sites across several geological periods. The Isle of Sheppey is particularly well known for the Eocene London Clay, yielding sharks’ teeth, crustaceans, fish, plant remains, and occasional vertebrate material.

Folkestone is famous for its Gault Clay exposures, where ammonites are especially common, along with a variety of other marine fossils. The county is also renowned for its Cretaceous chalk, with the cliffs of Dover providing classic exposures.

Chalk fossils such as echinoids are abundant, and some of the finest examples can be found in Kent, making it one of the most varied and productive fossil regions in the UK.

Kent by UK Fossils (UKGE Group)
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Herne Bay (Beltinge)

Beltinge, near Herne Bay, is one of the UK’s premier locations for collecting fossil shark teeth, attracting collectors from across Britain and Europe. The foreshore exposes the famous Beltinge Fish Beds, which can yield a wide variety of shark, ray and fish remains. While fossils can be found year-round, the site is most productive during very low spring tides, when the richest layers are exposed and large numbers of teeth can be collected under the right conditions.Eocene, Foreshore, Rating: ♦♦♦♦♦
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Kent by UK Fossils (UKGE Group)
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Locality photograph of Warden Point (Isle of Sheppey)

Warden Point (Isle of Sheppey)

Warden Point provides access to the fossil-rich London Clay coast of the Isle of Sheppey. Small fossils collect in beach shingle and pyrite drifts, while phosphatic nodules can preserve larger animals. Marine fossils and plant remains record an early Eocene sea receiving material from warm-climate forests. Mud, tides and landslips demand a carefully planned visit. Eocene, Cliffs and Foreshore, Rating: ♦♦♦♦♦

Kent by UK Fossils (UKGE Group)
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Locality photograph of Folkestone

Folkestone

Folkestone’s Gault Clay at Copt Point and East Wear Bay is renowned for ammonites and a rich marine fauna. The coast also exposes Lower Greensand and Chalk, but fragile fossils and difficult tidal terrain make careful planning essential. Cretaceous, Cliffs and Foreshore, Rating: ♦♦♦♦♦

Kent by UK Fossils (UKGE Group)
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Locality photograph of Minster (Isle of Sheppey)

Minster (Isle of Sheppey)

Minster gives access to the western end of Sheppey’s fossil-rich London Clay coast, where fruits, seeds and other small fossils collect among shingle and pyrite. Larger nodules can preserve rarer animals, although reaching the productive shore involves a longer walk than at Warden Point. The coast’s mud, tides and unstable slopes require careful route planning. Eocene, Cliffs and Foreshore, Rating: ♦♦♦♦♦

Kent by UK Fossils (UKGE Group)
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Locality photograph of Tankerton

Tankerton

When beach conditions are favourable, Tankerton can be a rewarding place to search the London Clay foreshore. Fish, crustaceans, molluscs and shark teeth occur loose or inside nodules, while scouring can reveal much larger patches of clay. The shore changes continually, and finding productive material depends as much on safe access and recent exposure as on a careful eye. Eocene, Foreshore, Rating: ♦♦♦♦♦

Kent by UK Fossils (UKGE Group)
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Locality photograph of Abbey Wood

Abbey Wood

The designated fossil pit in Lesnes Abbey Woods, southeast London, is famous for its early Eocene shark teeth and shell-rich sediment. Careful sieving can also reveal fish remains and much rarer vertebrate fossils. Follow the site’s limits on digging and material removal, and arrange organised visits with the council before travelling. Eocene, Disused Pit, Rating: ♦♦♦♦♦

Kent by UK Fossils (UKGE Group)
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Locality photograph of St Margaret’s Bay

St Margaret’s Bay

St Margaret’s Bay gives access to a striking Chalk shoreline beneath the South Foreland cliffs. Patient searching of permitted loose material can reveal flint sponges, echinoids and shells, while the bay’s two sides expose different parts of the succession. Cretaceous, Cliffs and Foreshore, Rating: ♦♦♦

Kent by UK Fossils (UKGE Group)
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Locality photograph of Samphire Hoe

Samphire Hoe

Samphire Hoe provides a managed reserve and access to the natural shore west of the reclaimed ground. Its Chalk fossils and cliff succession are fascinating, but the reserve paths and the tidal beach have very different access conditions. Cretaceous, Cliffs and Foreshore, Rating: ♦♦♦♦♦

Kent by UK Fossils (UKGE Group)
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Locality photograph of Pegwell Bay

Pegwell Bay

The northern shore of Pegwell Bay offers Chalk fossils and a remarkable view of younger sediments at Cliffs End. Echinoids, crinoid pieces and shells occur in loose material, within a sensitive nature reserve where access restrictions must be respected. Cretaceous, Cliffs and Foreshore, Rating: ♦♦♦

Kent by UK Fossils (UKGE Group)
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Locality photograph of Kingsgate

Kingsgate

The Botany–Kingsgate chalk coast combines sandy bays with fossil-bearing chalk and flint. The original guide follows the Botany-side descent eastwards towards the arch and White Ness, where echinoids and other Chalk fossils reward a careful low-tide search. Cretaceous, Cliffs and Foreshore, Rating: ♦♦

Kent by UK Fossils (UKGE Group)
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Locality photograph of Kingsdown

Kingsdown

The chalk coast south of Kingsdown has imposing cliffs, flint-covered shore and a succession of important geological markers. Loose flint fossils are often more rewarding than the vast quantities of fallen chalk, but the remote tidal shore is demanding. Cretaceous, Cliffs and Foreshore, Rating: ♦♦♦

Kent by UK Fossils (UKGE Group)
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Locality photograph of Dumpton Gap

Dumpton Gap

Dumpton Gap has sandy beach, flint accumulations and a chalk wave-cut platform where patient searching can reveal echinoids, shells and sponges. Finds are not especially abundant, but the local flint bands give this coast considerable geological interest. Cretaceous, Cliffs and Foreshore, Rating: ♦♦

Kent by UK Fossils (UKGE Group)
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Locality photograph of Seasalter

Seasalter

The broad London Clay foreshore at Seasalter rewards patient searching among muddy pebble and pyrite concentrations. Many fossils remain concealed inside phosphatic nodules, including crustaceans that can need careful specialist preparation. Conditions and exposure change with the tides, making a cautious approach and a good eye more useful than expectations of an easy find. Eocene, Foreshore, Rating: ♦♦♦♦

Kent by UK Fossils (UKGE Group)
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Locality photograph of Reculver

Reculver

The sandy cliffs west of Reculver expose a different fossil world from the clay shores farther towards Herne Bay. This locality is especially rewarding for collectors interested in fragile bivalves from the Thanet Formation, with shell-rich beds and concretions appearing on the foreshore as conditions change. Tide planning and careful support of delicate specimens are essential. Eocene, Cliffs and Foreshore, Rating: ♦♦♦

Kent by UK Fossils (UKGE Group)
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Elmley Hill

On the southern side of the Isle of Sheppey, Elmley Hill offers a quiet but demanding introduction to the London Clay. Lobster and fish remains occur in phosphatic nodules, with other fossils in pyritic shingle. Finds can be sparse, the walk is long and the shore is muddy; arrange reserve-manager permission before leaving the marked trail to collect. Eocene, Cliffs and Foreshore, Rating: ♦♦♦

Kent by UK Fossils (UKGE Group)
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Allhallows-on-Sea

Allhallows-on-Sea offers intermittent London Clay collecting on the southern Thames shore beside the holiday-park seawall. Its chief interest is crustaceans preserved in nodules, particularly crabs, although clay and shingle can remain hidden beneath silt. A visit is most rewarding when firm upper-shore material is exposed and the tide allows a comfortable return along the seawall. Eocene, Foreshore, Rating: ♦♦♦

Kent by UK Fossils (UKGE Group)
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Locality photograph of Lower Upnor

Lower Upnor

Lower Upnor’s London Clay shore is a modest collecting locality beside the Medway, reached by the seawall near the yacht club. Slumped, vegetated cliffs and modern shore deposits often hide the clay, and finds can be scarce. Patient examination of loose upper-foreshore shingle and nodules may reveal marine fossils, provided you stay well clear of deep estuarine mud. Eocene, Foreshore, Rating: ♦

Kent by UK Fossils (UKGE Group)
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Locality photograph of Dover

Dover

The East Cliff and Langdon coast at Dover exposes a classic Chalk succession and a varied marine fauna. Langdon Stairs’ tunnel-and-ladder route offers a demanding approach to the shore, where tides and falling rock require particular care. Cretaceous, Cliffs and Foreshore, Rating: ♦♦♦

Kent by UK Fossils (UKGE Group)
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Studd Hill

The Studd Hill shore extends westwards from Hampton Pier to Long Rock. Patches of London Clay and loose nodules yield occasional fossils, although much of the beach can be covered by sand or pebbles. Its scientific history includes the type discovery of Hyracotherium leporinum, but a modern collecting visit is more likely to involve patient searching for small marine remains. Eocene, Foreshore, Rating: ♦♦