St James' Pit

St James' Pit
Site of Special Scientific Interest
Norwich Crag basement bed at St James' Pit
St James' Pit is located in Norfolk
St James' Pit
Location within Norfolk
LocationNorfolk
Grid referenceTG241094[1]
Coordinates52°38′08″N 1°18′37″E / 52.63555°N 1.31038°E / 52.63555; 1.31038
InterestGeological
Area3.5 hectares (8.6 acres)[1]
Notification1995[1]
Natural England website

St James' Pit is a 3.5-hectare (8.6-acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest in Norwich in Norfolk.[1][2] It is a Geological Conservation Review site[3] within Mousehold Heath, which is a Local Nature Reserve.[4]

This site has been designated because of its jaw and vertebra fossils of Liodon and Mosasaurus, which were two genera of mosasaurs, large marine reptiles dating to the Upper Cretaceous (Campanian-Maastrichtian).[5]

  1. ^ a b c d "Designated Sites View: St James' Pit". Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 16 June 2018.
  2. ^ "Map of St James' Pit". Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 16 June 2018.
  3. ^ "St James's Pit, Norwich (Jurassic – Cretaceous Reptilia)". Geological Conservation Review. Joint Nature Conservation Committee. Retrieved 25 May 2018.
  4. ^ "Designated Sites View: Mousehold Heath". Local Nature Reserves. Natural England. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
  5. ^ "St James' Pit citation" (PDF). Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 16 June 2018.