Echinoid Fossil Bathonian Jurassic Dorset UK Genuine Specimen COA Fuller’s Earth Herbury Gore

Description

Genuine Middle Jurassic Echinoid Fossil

This carefully selected fossil is an indeterminate echinoid, scientifically recorded as Echinoidea indet., from the Fuller’s Earth Formation of the Great Oolite Group. It was collected from Herbury Gore near Weymouth, Dorset, UK, and dates to the Bathonian Stage of the Middle Jurassic Period.

Approximately 166 to 168 million years old, this authentic British fossil represents a marine animal that lived in the warm, shallow seas covering southern England during the Middle Jurassic. Echinoids belong to the phylum Echinodermata and are relatives of modern sea urchins, sand dollars and heart urchins.

The specimen has not been assigned to a particular genus or species, so the accurate scientific identification Echinoidea indet. is used. This preserves its value as a properly described geological specimen without attributing it to a more precise taxon than the available features allow.

Fuller’s Earth Formation Geology

The Fuller’s Earth Formation is a recognised Bathonian-age geological unit within the Great Oolite Group. In southern England, it consists predominantly of grey, fossiliferous mudstone, commonly calcareous, with beds of muddy limestone, sandy limestone and calcareous sandstone.

These sediments accumulated within the Wessex Basin, an extensive Jurassic sedimentary basin that covered Dorset and neighbouring areas. The predominance of fine-grained marine mud suggests periods of relatively quiet deposition, when clay and carbonate particles settled through the water column onto the seabed. Limestone and shell-rich horizons record variations in water movement, sediment supply and biological activity.

The Fuller’s Earth succession around the Weymouth Anticline has long been known for its varied marine fossil assemblages. Historical geological studies describe fossiliferous beds in the area, including substantial accumulations of shells and other remains from the Bathonian sea floor.

Jurassic Marine Echinoid

Echinoids possess an internal skeleton known as a test, constructed from tightly joined calcite plates. In living sea urchins, these plates support movable spines used for protection, movement and interaction with the seabed. After death, the spines commonly detach and the test may become compressed, incomplete or partly obscured by sediment during fossilisation.

Features that may be visible on fossil echinoids include the curved outline of the test, individual calcite plates, ambulacral areas bearing pore pairs, tubercles that once supported spines and traces of the mouth or apical region. Preservation varies naturally according to burial conditions, mineral replacement, weathering and the degree to which the specimen has been exposed from its surrounding rock.

As an echinoderm, this animal formed part of the diverse benthic community living on or within the Jurassic sea floor. It would have shared its environment with bivalves, brachiopods, gastropods, ammonites, crinoids and other marine invertebrates.

Herbury Gore Fossil Locality

Herbury Gore lies on the Dorset coast near Weymouth, within a region internationally recognised for its richly fossiliferous Jurassic geology. The local rocks preserve evidence of changing marine environments within the Wessex Basin and provide an important record of life during the Bathonian Stage.

The association of this specimen with a named formation, geological group, stage and locality gives it excellent educational and display value. It is suitable for collectors of British fossils, Jurassic marine life, echinoderms, Dorset geology and Great Oolite Group specimens.

Authentic Collectable Fossil

This is a genuine natural fossil rather than a replica or manufactured reproduction. Its surface texture, preservation, colouration and shape are products of its original biology, burial history, mineralisation and later geological weathering.

The photograph shows the actual carefully chosen specimen you will receive. Please study the supplied images closely, as they provide the best record of its individual preservation and appearance.

Full sizing please see photo.

A generic Certificate of Authenticity card is included, supported by our lifetime guarantee of authenticity. This Bathonian echinoid makes a distinctive addition to a fossil collection, geological display, educational cabinet or natural-history collection.