Late Jurassic (Kimmeridgian) of England

Reptiles have been recorded from 60 sites in the Kimmeridge Clay between Dorset and Yorkshire (listed above). The faunas are dominated by marine forms (plesiosaurs, ichthyosaurs, and marine crocodiles; see (Figure 7.5) and (Figure 7.8), but some localities (e.g. Weymouth) have also yielded significant remains of terrestrial reptiles, including important dinosaurs and turtles. Kimmeridge Bay, the type locality for the Kimmeridgian Stage, has produced the largest fauna, which includes the type specimens of six species. The five GCR localities (Figure 5.1), at Smallmouth Sands, Weymouth ([SY 669 764]–[SY 672 771]), Roswell Pits, Ely ([TL 555 808]–[TL 551 805], Chawley ([SP 475 043]), Gaulter Gap–Broad Bench, Kimmeridge Bay [SY 91 79] and Encombe Bay ([SY 937 773]–[SY 955 771]), provide good coverage of rocks of Early to Late Kimmeridgian age, and cover the best known fossil reptile localities.

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