Bruton Railway Cutting
Encyclopedia
Bruton Railway Cutting is a 1.7 hectare
geological Site of Special Scientific Interest at Bruton
in Somerset
, notified in 1971.
The geology exposed in the area near Bruton station
(which opened in 1856 on what is now the Heart of Wessex Line
) is from the Bathonian
epoch of the Middle Jurassic
. The citation for the site describes it as one of the best places in England to demonstrate the stratigraphic distinction of ammonite
s in the subcontractus zone and the morrisi zone.
Hectare
The hectare is a metric unit of area defined as 10,000 square metres , and primarily used in the measurement of land. In 1795, when the metric system was introduced, the are was defined as being 100 square metres and the hectare was thus 100 ares or 1/100 km2...
geological Site of Special Scientific Interest at Bruton
Bruton
Bruton is a town and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated on the River Brue seven miles south-east of Shepton Mallet, just south of Snakelake Hill and Coombe Hill, ten miles north-west of Gillingham and twelve miles south-west of Frome in the South Somerset district. The town has a...
in Somerset
Somerset
The ceremonial and non-metropolitan county of Somerset in South West England borders Bristol and Gloucestershire to the north, Wiltshire to the east, Dorset to the south-east, and Devon to the south-west. It is partly bounded to the north and west by the Bristol Channel and the estuary of the...
, notified in 1971.
The geology exposed in the area near Bruton station
Bruton railway station
Bruton railway station serves a largely rural area of the county of Somerset in England. The station is situated in the small town of Bruton....
(which opened in 1856 on what is now the Heart of Wessex Line
Heart of Wessex Line
The Heart of Wessex Line, also known as the Bristol to Weymouth line, is a United Kingdom railway line that runs from Bristol to Westbury to Weymouth...
) is from the Bathonian
Bathonian
In the geologic timescale the Bathonian is an age or stage of the Middle Jurassic. It lasted from approximately 167.7 Ma to around 164.7 Ma...
epoch of the Middle Jurassic
Middle Jurassic
The Middle Jurassic is the second epoch of the Jurassic Period. It lasted from 176-161 million years ago. In European lithostratigraphy, rocks of this Middle Jurassic age are called the Dogger....
. The citation for the site describes it as one of the best places in England to demonstrate the stratigraphic distinction of ammonite
Ammonite
Ammonite, as a zoological or paleontological term, refers to any member of the Ammonoidea an extinct subclass within the Molluscan class Cephalopoda which are more closely related to living coleoids Ammonite, as a zoological or paleontological term, refers to any member of the Ammonoidea an extinct...
s in the subcontractus zone and the morrisi zone.
External links
- English Nature website (SSSI information)