Red Crag at Shelley

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BOBBITT'S HOLE, BELSTEAD

brought up in the trawls of fishermen. What is now the estuary of the Orwell was a long narrow glacial lake which became silted up ; nine feet of peat with an abundance of hazel nut shells prove this'. T h e Belstead Brook and other side Valleys were arms of the Orwell Lake ; this is shown by the Bobbitt's Hole excavations, and diggings in other suitable places would doubtless yield further evidence. T h e terminal moraine of the Orwell glacier must have been beyond the present coastline, possibly on the site of the bar which exists across the mouth of Harwich Harbour. This moraine would have been subjected to a great deal of erosion when the North Sea submerged the former piain, and lt must have been further reduced by tidal scour after the estuaries became tidal. When completed, the results of the examination of the pollen grains and of the mollusca will appear in a later issue of these proceedings. [Ed. These important discoveries have come about through watching digging of sewer trenches and other excavations. If members would report any diggings they see other important information may come to light.]

RED CRAG AT BY F . H . A .

SHELLEY

ENGLEHEART.

IT is well known that the Suffolk Red Crag west of Ipswich is in general much less fossiliferous than that to the east, the deposits having been largely decalcified through dissolution of the shells bv acidified water. This process, however, was far from universal, and some years ago I came across a small exposure of fossiliferous crag at Shelley, south of Hadleigh. Unable to follow u p the matter at the time, I recently re-visited the place. Only two small patches are now visible—on the hillside above Shelley Ha 11, about level with the chimneys. Although this area is considerably contorted (see Mem. Geol. Surv. 1885 (10), p. 21) it seems probable that the bed is in situ and not an erratic. All the shells, however are broken up ; I was able to recognise only Glycimens [Pectunculus] elycimeris, L i n n , cf. Mya arenaria var. lata (J. Sow ), cf. Nucella [Purpura] lapillus (Linn.), cf. Bulla sp. and a small longitudinally ribbed ostreid. T h e area is a steep hillside and the rock mostly hidden under pasture. Marks just above indicate old quarrying Operations These may have been for the overlying gravel or for calcium and phosphate from the crag. Shells may have been abundant. Is it fanciful to suggest that this may possibly have given the pansh its name ?


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