Lectures - 2010/2011

The development of coal forests during the Carboniferous is one of the best-known episodes in the history of life. Although often reconstructed as steamy tropical rainforests, these ancient ecosystems were a far cry from anything we might encounter today. Giant club mosses, horsetails and tree ferns were the dominant plants, not flowering trees as in modern rainforests. At their height, coal forests stretched all the way from Kansas to Kazakhstan, spanning the entire breadth of tropical Pangea. Most of what we know of their biodiversity and ecology has been learned from two centuries of coal mining; without coal mining, our knowledge would be greatly impoverished. Over the past few years, we have been exploring underground coal mines in the United States, where entire forested landscapes have been preserved intact over huge areas. Never before have geologists had the opportunity to walk through mile upon mile of fossilized forest.

Sam grew up only a few miles away from the Jurassic Coast and it is where he developed his interest in geology and fossils. After gaining a Masters in Geology from the Univertsity of Plymouth he worked as assistant warden and geologist at the Charmouth Heritage Coast Centre for four years. The experience he gained there in geological interpretation led him on to the position of Earth Science Adviser for the Jurassic Coast. He has always been determined to work in geological conservation and interpretation and feels privileged to be able to work along the coastline that he loves and that inspired him to study geology in the first place. As the Earth Science Adviser Sam helps develop interpretation for the team and its partners and co-ordinates input into several events along the World Heritage Site. Sam's work also takes him away from the coast where he assists in the monitoring and interpretation of important geological sites inland.

The Jurassic Coast was given World Heritage Status in 2001 because of its unique record of Mesozoic strata. We will look in detail at this astonishing record covering 185 million years of Earth’s history following the environmental changes, the resulting sediments deposited and the fossils that give testimony to the evolution of life through the Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous. We will finish by looking at how the coast is managed and the impacts of world Heritage Status.