Steeple Bay
Region: Essex
Nearest Town: Steeple
Geological Age: Ypresian • Eocene • Palaeogene • Cenozoic
Site Type: Foreshore • Cliff
About the Site
Steeple Bay is a productive London Clay fossil locality on the southern side of the Blackwater Estuary in Essex.
The LBPS locality covers the foreshore beside Steeple Bay Holiday Park, where low banks and a broad platform of London Clay become exposed at low tide.
The site is particularly well known for fossil crustaceans. Fragments of lobster and crab are regularly found in small nodules, while shark teeth, fish remains and a rich range of much smaller fossils can also occur amongst loose foreshore sediment.
Many of the fossils are small, so Steeple Bay rewards slow, careful searching rather than excavation. Fine grit collected from naturally loose foreshore material can also contain abundant microfossils and tiny vertebrate remains.
Geology & Stratigraphy
The fossil-bearing rock is the London Clay Formation, part of the Thames Group and of Ypresian age.
At Steeple Bay, London Clay is exposed principally as a broad intertidal platform together with very low banks. Exposure varies significantly according to mud, silt and tidal conditions, so substantial areas of clay visible on one visit may be covered on another.
Published descriptions place the exposure within the traditional Division B of the London Clay, with specialist collecting literature correlating the fossiliferous level more specifically with Division B2.
In the modern BGS lithostratigraphic framework, Division B and the lower part of Division C correspond to the Aveley Member of the London Clay Formation.
The Aveley Member is therefore the most useful modern member-level unit for the Steeple Bay exposure.
The clay contains concretions and phosphatic nodules. Some small, pale yellowish nodules contain crustacean remains, while larger cementstones also occur across the shore.
The extensive London Clay platform has been progressively exposed by erosion but is prone to becoming covered by modern estuarine silt.
Palaeoenvironment & Palaeoecology
The London Clay at Steeple Bay was deposited in a marine shelf environment during the Early Eocene.
Fine mud settled onto the seabed while a diverse marine fauna lived in the surrounding waters and on or within the sediment.
GeoEssex describes the Division B deposits exposed here as representing a relatively deeper-water phase of London Clay deposition. This should be understood comparatively rather than as evidence for a precisely known water depth.
Crustaceans were important members of the benthic community, while sharks and bony fish occupied the surrounding marine environment. Crinoids, molluscs and numerous microscopic organisms also contributed to the fauna.
Plant material and occasional other non-marine remains could be carried offshore from surrounding land.
The modern Blackwater Estuary is therefore unrelated to the original depositional environment except that modern tidal erosion has exposed the ancient marine sediments.
Fossil Preservation & Taphonomy
Steeple Bay is particularly characteristic for its small fossil-bearing nodules and loose microfossil-rich sediment.
Crustacean remains may occur within small light-coloured nodules. Pieces of carapace, claws and other parts can sometimes be seen projecting through the surface, while more complete specimens are much less frequent.
Shark teeth, fish teeth, small bones and vertebrae can weather free from the clay and become mixed with fine grit and shingle.
Very small fossils can become concentrated in patches of loose foreshore sediment. These may include foraminifera, ostracods, echinoderm remains, fish material and other microscopic fossils.
This means that a handful of apparently unremarkable loose grit can contain considerably more palaeontological material than is obvious in the field.
Modern tides continually move this material. Fossils collected loose from the foreshore may therefore have travelled some distance from their original position in the London Clay.
A loose fossil should never be assigned to a precise bed solely from the place where it was picked up.
Collecting Guidance
Visit around low tide, when the London Clay platform and the greatest amount of loose fossil-bearing material are exposed.
Beginning the search around two hours before low water can provide a useful collecting window while still allowing plenty of time before the incoming tide.
Fine grit and small areas of shingle are particularly worth examining where recent tides have shifted mud or seaweed.
Warm, dry conditions can make surface searching easier because partly dried clay and grit are much easier to inspect than wet sticky sediment.
The site can vary dramatically between visits. A productive patch of grit may disappear beneath silt following subsequent tides.
Useful equipment includes:
- waterproof boots with good grip
- knee pads
- gloves
- a hand lens
- small specimen boxes or bags
- a small hand sieve
- a small trowel for already loose sediment
- sample bags for small quantities of loose grit
- labels or a notebook
- a phone for checking tide and weather information
A microscope is particularly useful when examining fine samples at home.
A geological hammer is unnecessary for normal collecting here.
What to Look For
The most characteristic finds are small crustacean-bearing nodules.
Look for pale yellow, cream or brownish nodules amongst the clay and grit. Lobster or crab material may appear as patterned shell, part of a claw, a section of carapace or other organised structure projecting through the nodule.
Small shark teeth can occur loose. Look for glossy enamel, a definite crown and, where preserved, part of the root.
Fish vertebrae, teeth and small bone fragments can also be found amongst the finer material.
Do not ignore patches of fine grit. These can contain tiny shark and fish teeth, foraminifera, ostracods, echinoderm spines or plates and other microfossils that are extremely easy to miss in the field.
Small crinoid fragments may resemble patterned discs or segments.
Pyritised fossil wood and occasional other plant material may also occur.
Many ordinary nodules and stones contain no fossil, so look for genuine biological structure rather than relying on colour or shape alone.
Fossils at this Site
Explore fossils recorded from this site, see how to recognise them and, where enough LBPS records exist, what collectors are actually finding.
What collectors are finding
Typical examples from this site
Different anatomical parts or preservation styles can look very different. Choose an example to view it larger.
About this information
Fossil occurrences come from reviewed LBPS records. Encounter frequency and abundance use eligible collecting sessions where all finds were recorded. Preservation rarity uses the condition recorded at the time of collecting. Identification photographs may come from dedicated Fossil Examples or linked public LBPS Specimens; neither influences rarity or frequency calculations.
Visitor & Access Information
General Location
Steeple Bay lies on the southern shore of the Blackwater Estuary, north of the village of Steeple and approximately north-east of Maylandsea in Essex.
The fossil locality is the intertidal foreshore immediately adjacent to Steeple Bay Holiday Park.
It does not include the separate Stansgate fossil locality farther east
Directions
Travel towards the village of Steeple, near Southminster.
From Steeple, head north towards Steeple Bay using Canney Road and follow the signed public coastal route towards the Blackwater Estuary.
At the coast, use the established King Charles III England Coast Path and public access rather than walking unnecessarily through private areas of the holiday park.
The fossil-bearing London Clay occurs along the foreshore adjoining Steeple Bay.
Visit around low tide when the extensive clay platform is exposed.
Parking
There is no dedicated public fossil-site car park that LBPS can presently confirm.
Do not assume that parking within Steeple Bay Holiday Park is available to non-residents. Older collecting guides describe parking there with permission, but visitors should obtain current permission directly before relying on this.
Otherwise use lawful parking away from the holiday park and approach using public rights of way.
Never block Canney Road, farm entrances, holiday park access or emergency access to the sea wall.
Terrain
The upper route follows grassed sea defences and coastal paths.
The fossil locality itself consists of low London Clay banks, an extensive clay platform, patches of fine grit and shingle, seaweed and large areas of estuarine mud.
Wet London Clay is slippery.
The lower foreshore becomes extremely soft in places and should not be crossed simply to reach more distant exposures.
Exposure conditions vary greatly because modern mud and silt can cover the London Clay platform.Access, Permissions & Responsible Collecting
Use the established King Charles III England Coast Path and public rights of way to reach the shoreline.
The official route passes through the Steeple Bay area. At the holiday park, public passage can occasionally be interrupted briefly while vehicles pass or boats are launched or recovered.
The holiday park itself remains private property. Do not assume that public coastal access includes unrestricted access to caravan areas, facilities or parking.
Collect from naturally eroded loose material on the accessible foreshore.
Small samples of loose grit may be taken for careful sieving or microscopic examination where collecting is permitted, but avoid removing large quantities of sediment.
Do not excavate the low banks or hammer the exposed London Clay platform.
The surrounding estuary is exceptionally important for wildlife, so avoid disturbing saltmarsh, mudflats and feeding or roosting birds.
Safety & Legal Information
Safety Information
The principal hazards are deep mud, tides and slippery London Clay.
The lower Blackwater foreshore consists of extensive mudflat. Some areas can be extremely soft and capable of trapping footwear or making movement difficult.
Natural England specifically excludes access rights from areas of saltmarsh and mudflat along this coast because they are unsuitable for normal public access.
Remain on the firmer fossil-bearing upper foreshore.
Check tide times before visiting and keep track of the incoming water.
Wet clay and seaweed can be very slippery.
The coast path passes alongside working areas where vehicles and boats may occasionally cross the route near the holiday park. Pay attention to local signs and give moving vehicles and boat operations plenty of space.
SSSI / Legal Restrictions
The Steeple Bay foreshore lies within the Blackwater Estuary Site of Special Scientific Interest and within a wider complex of internationally protected estuarine habitats.
The Blackwater Estuary is also protected through Special Protection Area and Ramsar designations, primarily because of its internationally important habitats and bird populations.
Steeple Bay itself is additionally recognised by GeoEssex as Local Geological Site MaG6 — Steeple Bay Foreshore because of its extensive London Clay exposure and fossil assemblage.
Public access does not provide a general right to damage geological exposures or protected habitats.
Keep collecting low impact and concentrate on naturally released loose fossils and small quantities of loose sediment.
Do not hammer or excavate the London Clay platform or banks.
Do not enter saltmarsh or soft mudflat areas from which public coastal access is excluded, and avoid disturbing birds and other wildlife.