Fossil Spotting at Kimmeridge Bay (Also a Look at Clavell Tower)

[@AtomicShrimp]

*Afterthoughts & Addenda* *'Private Beaches'* - The foreshore (the bit you can walk on at low tide, but gets wet at high tide) belongs to the Crown Estate and is available for public access, however, there are steep cliffs and in many places, the high tide line is the foot of the cliff. The land surrounding this beach is private - so you can't get to it on foot or land vehicle, except by crossing private land. The cliffs are part of that private land, and the landowners do indeed have the right to forbid people from hacking away at the cliffs (their private land) with picks and hammers.

[@gavinhammond1778]

The so much for the both prompt and thorough reply.

[@Fairyfink]

Thank you Mr Shrimp for once again allowing me to accompany you on a walk I can no longer do in person. Much appreciated.

[@scottbelcher9026]

Amen!!! The same here with me… God bless you Claire and Mike(Mr Shrimp)!!! ❤

[@KyleRDent]

I also enjoy living vicariously through Mr Shrimp 😁

[@scottbelcher9026]

@@KyleRDent yes,his show is so great for those of us who can no longer do such things for ourselves anymore, but long for those days we could… God bless you…

[@georgec2894]

Long time follower of your great content, and now that you call on geologists, I hope I can be of assistance! The Kimmeridge Clay was thought to be deposited in a shallow marine environment with an average water depth of around 50-100 meters. The fossil assemblage you did a great job of describing helps support this, as that's exactly where they would've lived. Clay becomes 'claystone' through burial and compaction under heat and pressure... but this sediment accumulates at a really slow rate - so 1 meter of claystone can represent 1 million years of 'bio-sediment' accumulation, whereas a meter of sandstone can literally be one (Late-Jurassic) afternoon of deposition(!) The cyclic nature of the strata within the Kimmeridge Clay Formation is thought to be linked to climate cycles in which ocean oxic-anoxic cycles are causes by wind-induced water current variations (hence the link to ocean oxygenation as a function of depth variations). The death plate (or death assemblage) you correctly identified is almost certainly due to a fairly sudden anoxic event at whatever water depth these critters were living at. This can be called a 'restricted environment' and during these times it is likely that the biodiversity dropped notably. The surface weathering can be both chemical (from the sea) and physical - and you are correct that pre-existing weakness (softer lithologies and fractures sets) will be preferentially eroded. Those fracture sets will have formed orthogonal to the principal direction of stress the rock experienced at the time the fractures formed. You can get fracture sets that have different orientations, which form a 'stress history' showing the different stress regimes and orientations the rocks has experienced in its time since it lithified. 17:45 is some form of bioturbation, possibly Zoophycos...? P.s. my two links to these rocks are that I now work in Norway, studying rocks under the Norwegian North Sea, where this very same formation is the source rock for hydrocarbons - and I also grew up on the Isle of Wight, which is also part of this wider 'Jurassic Coastline' - as you'll know :)

[@AtomicShrimp]

I've got another video coming this weekend from a visit to Quantoxhead - same formations, but very spectacular in the way they have been exposed and eroded

[@georgec2894]

@@AtomicShrimp Excellent! That’s right next to Kilve, right? Some excellent structural geology there (faults, fracture networks etc.). That Formation traces right across the country and is exposed on the North East coastline (Yorkshire?) 👍

[@paulseeman6481]

Mike’s exasperated interactions with Ava the dog are hilarious 😂

[@EC2019]

Eva* though.

[@paulseeman6481]

@@EC2019 Bargain’s

[@melaniesmith1313]

I miss fossil hunting. I am old and disabled now. It was lovely to watch you. You have good content in general, but this really made me happy.

[@Sally4th_]

My specialty is more to igneous rocks but the formation at 17:35 might be the sheared-off base of a stromatilite colony - pillows of algal concretion that grow up over time.

[@XenoTheTurtle]

I was thinking about oncolites when I saw the formation, since they appear to be a bit more circular. But, now that you've mentioned, a sheared-off base of a stromatolite makes a lot more sense

[@johnlittle8975]

I'd been thinking some sort of coral concretion. Stromatolites are a definite possibility.

[@ricos1497]

Nonsense. Everyone knows it's aliens.

[@sdrx903]

id never thought of the word pillows being used in a non-igneous context but i guess thats the appropriate word lol

[@DreadEnder]

It’s a good theory however this area is part of the Jurassic coast so the rocks are from an age with a smaller population size of stromatolites and was volcanic so a lot of the bedrock layers are basalt. So a block with impressions left by running lava is not uncommon! Although then again this used to be a shallow ocean bed so stromatolites are still very possible.

[@steven5040]

I am a rockfall mitigation engineer and I love your accurate depictions of being "clobbered" by a loose rock block. I will have to use this on my job sites!

[@Jadegreif]

Orignally found your channel from the Scambaiter series, but I love your exploration stuff, so interesting and relaxing. Perfect for sunday morning!

[@ThatPhilBurgGuy]

Same here. I came for the scam baiting. But I stay for the randomness and quirkiness. Love this channel.

[@MamguSian]

Watching Eva's antics is such a treat 😄 She really knows how to enjoy herself. The geology is absolutely fascinating too, and how lovely that you only found one piece of litter to remove! I really enjoy sharing your explorations 💖 and seeing how those cliffs used to look. All gone in my time, of course, but that's the way the cookie(?) crumbles.

[@lizg5574]

Fantastic! Love seeing the Jurassic coast. I am sure John Locker (Fish Locker) would be delighted to hear you 'preach' his practices. Another of my favourite channels! Thank you for sharing your holiday with us all!

[@sdrx903]

an interesting thing where i live is a ~2300m mountain aptly named slate peak, and it has ammonites and other marine fossils all throughout the bedrock right next to the trail, so much so that you'd be lucky to find a meter stretch of it without a readily visible fossil. its just really fascinating to see that seismic processes have brought marine fossils all the way up into the peaks of a towering mountain range.

[@EvieJanePotter]

These adventure-y videos give me so much joy. I've always been fascinated with the UK and I doubt I'll ever get to visit for myself, so thank you for letting me live vicariously through you and these videos.

[@__-bk6mm]

I’m absolutely amazed at your restraint at saying one of the oldest and most British referential jokes “in Dorset, I’d recommend it to anyone”

[@WhenTheManComesAround]

We very much appreciate you sharing your adventures with us my friend 👍

[@wealdenpete]

Beneath Clavell Head was a shortlived mine working to extract oilshale in the nineteenth century. There are still a few traces of it if you know where to look.

[@oakking8599]

I always love being brought along on these small adventures, it kinda reminds me of going on walks with my grandparents when i was younger

[@leslyestych68]

No need to apologize for Eva barking, we love hearing and seeing her play on the beach. Thanks for taking us on this adventure.

[@Shaun.Stephens]

Who are 'we'? Speak for yourself. I live in a neighbourhood riddled with nocturnal barking dogs and I DON'T 'love' the sound. That said I enjoyed this video enough so that I was able to shut out the noisy animal.

[@bethenecampbell6463]

I don't mind hearing Eva either. She's a happy, energetic little soul. It's hilarious watching her entertain herself digging holes and getting distracted by a big chunk of dirt flying out.

[@rptta4616]

as a new geology student and a fan of this channel this was the perfect video! really cool to be able to see what the things that i've learned about actually look like :)

[@flutiyama]

Just want to say you're my absolute favourite channel. Thank you so much for sharing your life and interests with the world.

[@chimeratype]

i really appreciate these adventure type videos.. ive been dealing with onset of chronic pain over the past year or two and i miss going out on the long walks i used to so it’s always fun to see these

[@billweaver6092]

I’m in exactly the same position ( though my problem’s 4 years old, so I beat you on points! ) but Mike and Eva’s wandering are exactly what I used to do.

[@VillturDreki]

This is my new favorite series of yours. I love Adventure Shrimp.

[@8arcasticallyYours]

My siblings, cousins and I spent many happy hours exploring at Kimmeridge when we were younger. Should go back there one day, really, as it's fairly local to me.

[@carolh9734]

First thought that the fossil might be a giant clam shell or perhaps turtle? We visited this area as a family when I as a child over 50 years ago and have been interested in fossils and beach combing ever since.Great video.Thanks.

[@kilianhzh]

For all of the wine lovers here: the kimmerridgian soils are pretty important for winegrowing in france. They are found in sancerre, champagne and chablis.

[@deborahhart3607]

Thank you for the lovely pictures of Kimmeridge. Very happy memories of playing in the rock pools as a child.

[@angustheterrible3149]

The texture of the rock underfoot reminds me of how artists and movies often depict the way dinosaur skin may have looked. I couldn't help but imagine that you were walking along the back of a rather large brachiosaurus that was taking a nap on the beach.

[@radicalcartoons2766]

Oh please, don't give the Truthers more ammunition

[@AtomicShrimp]

Mudfossil University has entered the chat

[@angustheterrible3149]

@@radicalcartoons2766 I have absolutely no idea what you're talking about, it was just an innocent comment about what I invisioned because the texture of the rock was cool.

[@lynnbry1556]

Lovely! - worth a visit to Charmouth which seems more open to collecting fossils washed from the cliffs, also great interpretation center..

[@AtomicShrimp]

Yeah, I'm going to get down to Charmouth sometime soon. Seatown is very good for segments of fossil crinoid stems if you just sit down and sift through the gravel

[@lynnbry1556]

@@AtomicShrimp Found a few crinoid rocks east, over the inlet from the Interp. Ctr, lots of belemnites and ammonites 1-2km to the west.. marvelous and friendly place. Haven’t been since the pandemic (hail from Boston, US). If traveling, Newfoundland on this side of the Atlantic is exceptional. Ediacaran fossils at Mistaken Point and Bonavista peninsula, Silurian is about as young as it gets. Happy fossicking -

[@AlissaSss23]

What a STUNNING VIDEO! I'm not sure what you have filmed it with, but the image quality is pure perfection! Great job!!!

[@BakaKarasu]

I moved away from Dorset a few years ago - I dearly miss this coastline, so thank you for letting me wander around it with you.

[@PlanetZhooZhoo]

Thank you, this reminded me of all my childhood fossil hunting holidays in Dorset with my parents.

[@applegal3058]

I really enjoy hearing and seeing Eva enjoying herself. She's a good girl who's just having fun. You don't need to apologize for her or try to stop her barking. At least for me. I love dogs. 🐕

[@florencehall005]

I love that you don’t have music over the video! Really feels like we’re going on a walk with you

[@sirjaunty1]

Fantastic forshore fossil finding film, for sure.

[@JakeMcaulay]

my mum used to take me fossil hunting on the south east coast when i was a kid so much fun. i'll never forget when i picked up what i thought was a old hook which turned out to be the biggest ammonite any of us had ever seen.

[@theprebuiltdave7423]

At 17:40 you wanted to know what had left that impression in the rock. That there was a Guylian Seashell…. Love your videos. Everyone single one is a lovely watch. :)

[@helenmather9722]

The concrete WW11 blocks are part of a stop line. A defensive line aimed at slowing an enemy invasion until reinforments could arive. There are more than 50 around the country.

[@uutdiegodzilla3821]

You always manage to show me something new and interesting or, simply, how beautiful the UK is! Thank you. 🤗 The way Eva barked when you said: "Millions of years", made me chuckle. Like she wanted to say: "WE also have been in this spot millions of years now, we must go, keep on exploring!" Edit: Is there any reason why the military must have a shooting range at such a beautiful place, full of fossils? 🤨

[@__-bk6mm]

I don’t think they fire literally onto the beach but on the area above.

[@8arcasticallyYours]

They do practice range firing from the guns set back a fair way on MOD land, so that the shots go into the sea and don't damage anything. They do the same in North Wales. On a fairly still day we can hear/feel the guns firing from the percussive disturbance in the air for several miles around 😊

[@uutdiegodzilla3821]

@@8arcasticallyYours That's good to hear. Thank you for the information - I highly appreciate that the army is not destroying these important fossils!

[@minijimi]

Good Job, Looks like a lovely spot. Gravity works, good thing you did not venture close to the cliff. I often wonder how far the coast line was out hundreds or even thousands of years ago. The slow erosion of the gentle wave lapping at the shore will eventually reshape the country. If you revisit that beach, I wonder if those slabs of rock will be there. Thanks for the video Mr. Shrimp.

[@UristMcPerson]

Oh hey! I did my geology dissertation here! This place has such a rich geological history. If you go to the old quarry at the Grove Lime Kiln on that island south of Weymouth (lovely and rare shingle beach there by the way) you'll be able to look down on some of those sediment limestone units you're looking at in the wall, and see trace fossils of ancient tree trunks!

[@UristMcPerson]

The fossil at 17:40 also looks like an algal mat fossil. The rings would be each consecutive growth of the algal mat. You can also see the in cross section at the quarry I mentioned.

[@m.g.540]

Thank you for the visit to the Dorset coast, as a child it was a favourite seashore, good memories of a place that is many oceans away now.

[@daveyjones6465]

Good to see you back doing the cycling holidays and a little bit of history thrown in looking forward to your next episode 👍

[@marysueper140]

I enjoyed going along on your jaunt on the beach. I hope to have another excursion on the Oregon coast once it’s warm again next year.

[@President_Starscream]

I just love these exploration videos. Mr. Shrimp should make vr videos like this.

[@kjh789az]

Thanks for this breath of fresh air! This issue of Crown Land should give us all pause for thought. The monarch owns not only the foreshore, but several miles out to sea, which is why a recent off-shore wind farm required royal permission for it to be established. So democratic!

[@nicolajoannerolfe9463]

I haven't been to Kimmeridge for over 35 years! Thanks for uploading the video! Eva is just so cute! Best wishes from Italy🇬🇧🇮🇹

[@chiyo9014]

Wonderful! I recently went to a spot in southern Oregon to collect Ammonite fossils. They are all throughout the roadcuts made by the timber industry at the location I went to. So much fun!

[@CarJul666]

"Collecting" fossils with a camera. Great idea, that might become a new trend.

[@Katreyn_]

Very cool! Another thing I probably wouldn't get to see in person. Thank you for sharing these adventures as always.

[@tomg721]

Thanks for taking us along on your journey.

[@Zombiesheriff]

Love it that you watch the fish locker as well 👍🏻👍🏻

[@amandadavies..]

Eva reminds me of a little dog I had from being a child to late teenager ( poodle)....she would spend hours digging up bricks or large rocks (partly with her mouth) and get really annoyed with them and make various noises while getting her mouth caked in mud. Lived to 19 years old, so obviously did her no harm. Nice to see her have fun in her own doggy little way.

[@RealGestumblindi]

This might be a silly association, but your shadow with the wide-brimmed hat on the beach reminds me of the Sandeman (port wine) logo. Do you like port? ;-)

[@JustGem87]

I think those might be tank traps. They come in all shapes and sizes. Tank traps In that from are normally reoffered to as Dragons teeth. Great video I really wish there was somewhere near me good for finding fossils but its all mud flats around me and most of the rocky terrain is relatively young sand stone.

[@Styphon]

At Peggy's Cove, Nova Scotia, the signs are basically "If it's dark it gets wet; if it gets wet it gets slippery - keep off". It doesn't keep people from getting swept off the rocks by the waves, but I guess that's the invisible hand of evolution at play.

[@paulcarmichael7892]

Wow.. Walking along beaches in the UK I've said to my wife and kids that you need to attune yourself to the type of rock you are looking for... And then you are on a beach made of pretty much just that type, I'm sorry but my palms would have been itching :) My best ever ammonite was found on the beach at Hornsea, near Bridlington. I brought it with me to Brisbane. Love your work, love your videos, thank you - and Jenny of course, I'm a married man so I know she "allows" it ;) - for what you do.

[@thestrangegreenman]

11:50 I dig it, man 17:46 looks like a stromatolite, which is a colony of photosynthetic bacteria which incorporates mud and turns into almost a living rock. That said, check with a geologist to see if stromatolites are normally found in this area 👀

[@davidkbailey]

I am not a paleontologist or geologist (I’m an English teacher, actually). But that large fossilish feature you were wondering about looks a bit like a turtle shell to me. And I know “fossilish” isn’t a word, but it does the job here well enough.

[@michaelkitto758]

Love this sort of content. And you don't need to apologise for your doggo being happy! Plus it's super cool hearing about Fish Locker on a different channel

[@mermeridian2041]

Fascinating trek - thank you for taking us along (and I love seeing the having such a great time, too!). Dumb question - why were all those rocks in the pillbox? Wave action? Love the view from up near that tower - thanks for showing us that!

[@peterbriggs3408]

Mystery rock reminds me of the patterns in geothermal mud pools where steam bubbles up through the mud

[@silva7493]

Lovely! Really interesting stuff. Some of the budrock floor really reminded me of elephant skin. Eva really likes rocks.

[@brooklime]

You can have a look round the tower on Landmark Trust open days :)

[@maxwright9194]

I believe those tank traps are called Dragons Teeth, they're all over Dorset and some are pretty far in land. In fact, I've seen some near Cerne

[@janemc7146]

I have one in my garden in Blandford, Dorset.

[@30matey]

i really enjoyed this was interesting to see the different fossils around i could have watched all day thanks for the upload the intereactions with ava the dog were funny i hope to see more interesting walks like this

[@ian-c.01]

@17:50 you noticed an unusual formation which looks (to me) very much like a tortoise shell.

[@rsbohn]

Do you think you could make a latex or plaster cast of the impressions in the rocks? I really enjoyed this trip to the beach.

[@bendubu]

It’s like being on a trip with your dad, it’s like you know everything about everything all while professing not to and being really interesting 😂

[@Svafne]

Nice little trip, thanks for letting us tag along!

[@suegeorge998]

The striated side of the cliff is so mesmerizing. Such lovely countryside. Wouldn't it be wonderful to swim there in warmer weather and snorkel a bit to see what fossils might be visible just under the surface?

[@jimbutler6925]

Nice video, very interesting. I think that large swirly thing coukd have been a turtle shell, fossilised. It looks symmetrical and the right kind of shape.

[@artistknownaslisa]

Thank you for taking me along. I'm learning a lot from you. ❤️🦐❤️

[@Frank-om4fc]

Fascinating video...thank you...never seen so many fossils in one place...thought at one stage a dinosaur might show up !

[@bluejacketergazu2447]

17:50 from the looks of it, looks like turtle shell, but who knows

[@f00ky3w2oob]

Wish I were half as interesting as yourself! But it's nice to be able to experience it vicariously. Have a good one, all

[@ve2vfd]

At 17:36 the pattern and shape looks a lot like the shell of a sea turtle, but I doubt it was one (are there turtle fossils? well I'll be, just googled it and yep, turtle fossils are a thing).

[@cantsay]

I really enjoyed your shadow

[@Kitsunelanie]

I'm noticing some weird audio cuts where it's super stereo separated when it fades in that I haven't noticed in your videos before. Have you considered setting the audio to mono and automating it coming back in to stereo when it works? For most speaking you'll want mono anyway-- good mono is better than bad stereo when it comes to voices.

[@AtomicShrimp]

I usually mix it down to mono at the start of my work flow. I must have missed something this time

[@Kitsunelanie]

@@AtomicShrimp Them's the breaks sometimes!

[@samhenwood5746]

Wow so fantastic views & thanks Atomic shrimp 🤗.Hello Eva 👋

[@pixelfingers]

I keep watching these videos thinking the weather’s uncharacteristically nice for November and then reminding myself it’s not actually a live broadcast. 😅

[@chriswilliams-dm9tx]

Lovely video, keep them coming. 👍

[@XenoTheTurtle]

I might be completely off here, but I believe that those porous rock formations at 13:15 might be some sort of borrow or tubular coral mold.

[@flurgerbla7609]

in which way are the shrimp atomic? atomically small? or atomic as in having to do with radioactivity?

[@oliverg6864]

I think the thing you're not sure what it is, that looks like undulations amd concentric circles, is a stromatolite. They're giant mats of bacteria or other microbes and they form layers like that. We have some where I live, we got to see them in geology class. At least I'm pretty sure it's the same thing you're looking at.

[@coryman125]

I wonder if those little holes in the flat rocks are similar to potholes in rivers? There's a river near me that's very wide and shallow and made of a flaky sort of slate rock, and these big holes are randomly dispersed through it. Some are a few inches across, some are upwards of a metre, and about as deep too. You can be walking in barely ankle deep water and then suddenly drop into a hole where the water is stomach depth (and very cold), and because of the way the sun reflects on the surface they're very hard to see until it happens. As for the rock around 18:00, maybe some sort of coral fossil, or something similar? Just speculation, for both of those :)

[@sh4dowchas3r]

Was the Nodding Donkey still nodding? I was told, about 25 years ago admittedly, that it produced about 1 barrel of oil a day. The Kimmeridge Clay Formation is one of the main source rocks for oil & gas in the North Sea which is why there is oil & gas down that end too

[@joeallen9817]

Nice little video. Very informative. Thank you.

[@lautus1974]

Exactly what I would do if I was there. Thanks for taking me out on that day.👍

[@getyerspn]

Cracking video... Don't worry about Eva's barking, she's adorable and she sets of my dog who runs about looking for a playmate ..😄.

[@mannye]

So you're not allowed to chip anything out or split any rocks?

[@alandwells]

17:40 looks just like a turtle/tortoise shell, I have no idea if they had a living similar relative at that time though

[@MsAnpassad]

I agree and sea turtles have been around since the Jurassic period.

[@WindUpFun]

Eva Perro

[@jonathanrichards593]

9:09 "A rock-pool here - not a lot to see..." Followed by anemone, blenny, periwinkle and SHRIMP! This is an illustration of what I call, in my inimitably egotistical way, Jonathan's Law of Zoomable Interest, stated as: In any given humdrum situation, there is /always/ something interesting to look at.

[@ebikecnx7239]

Our school, Foster's Grammar School, camped there in the Third Form. RIP Mike Goode and Ken House, the teachers who taught us kayaking there.

[@kevinmartin7760]

You can see the slope of the strata in the cliff, as that thick hard layer that appear to be about head height where you first reach the beach (though that is perhaps a trick of perspective) rises to the left (west) and is nearly at the top of the cliff when you reach the firing range. You can also clearly see the edges of these strata (well, not the ones on the cliff, but deeper in the rock formation) underwater in Google's satellite view of the bay.

[@AtomicShrimp]

Yeah, it undulates quite a bit along the coast. In a week or two, I have a video coming about a similar looking beach in Somerset, where the distortion of the strata is even more evident.

[@pambrown6260]

Take 5. Great idea. In Tennessee saw: It doesn't stop where it drops.

[@ricos1497]

Did you have a look inside the tank traps to see if they'd caught one?

[@Pooky-Cat]

Lol

[@BakuPL]

Whenever I watch your videos on TV in a living room and there is Eva barking on the background my dog comes and starts watching the video with me.

[@deejayk5939]

I was thinking I would definitely be turning an ankle on that surface! Really interesting though, worth the risk.

[@illi-the-wolf]

the formation @17:35 looks to me like feeding marks - a trace fossil known as zoophycos... it is strange to see them weathered as crosscut to the bed that clearly, but that's what my sedimentology brain says 😅

[@ratvelvet6176]

There is a voluntary fossil collecting code to adhere to, aims to instil responsible collecting practices, common sense in a written form basically

[@AtomicShrimp]

Yeah, basically 'don't be a destructive selfish greedy oaf' 😁

[@ratvelvet6176]

I appreciate your collecting ‘with your eyes’ approach, rather than smash and grab, this goes for the foraging you do as well, you set a great example!