geological Site of Special Scientific Interest
A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle o ...
in
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean.
The county town is the city of Gl ...
Cotswold
The Cotswolds (, ) is a region in central-southwest England, along a range of rolling hills that rise from the meadows of the upper Thames to an escarpment above the Severn Valley and Evesham Vale.
The area is defined by the bedrock of Jura ...
Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty
An Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB; , AHNE) is an area of countryside in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, that has been designated for conservation due to its significant landscape value. Areas are designated in recognition of ...
to the north of the county. It provides significant exposures of a succession in the Inferior Oolite strata of the Middle
Jurassic
The Jurassic ( ) is a geologic period and stratigraphic system that spanned from the end of the Triassic Period million years ago (Mya) to the beginning of the Cretaceous Period, approximately Mya. The Jurassic constitutes the middle period of ...
time interval. These exhibit characteristics unique to the north Cotswolds. They span the Junction between the
Aalenian
The Aalenian () is a subdivision of the Middle Jurassic Epoch/Series of the geologic timescale that extends from about 174.1 Ma to about 170.3 Ma (million years ago). It was preceded by the Toarcian and succeeded by the Bajocian.
Stratigraphi ...
and
Bajocian
In the geologic timescale, the Bajocian is an age and stage in the Middle Jurassic. It lasted from approximately 170.3 Ma to around 168.3 Ma (million years ago). The Bajocian Age succeeds the Aalenian Age and precedes the Bathonian Age.
Stra ...
Stages.
The evidence shows that the site lay within an extensive area called the ''Moreton Swell''. This was uplifted in early Bajocian times. The site is important for geological research, and of significant value in reconstruction of the geography of the Middle Jurassic time period.