Not many people make a link between geology and wildlife but the rocks and other geological deposits of an area dictate the landscape, the plant communities and how both surface and ground water behaves. Limestone and chalk are alkaline and can support unique plant communities but hard limestone can produce crags and gorges whilst softer chalk makes a gentle rolling landscape. By contrast, nutrient- poor, acidic soils are ideal for heathland.<\/p>\n
Devon has some of the most varied geology in the UK, from the dinosaur-era sands and chalks of East Devon, to the much older limestones of Torbay and Plymouth, and the rocky tors and bogs of Dartmoor\u2019s once-molten granite. Devon even has an entire geological era named after it \u2013 the Devonian \u2013 the only county in the UK to be commemorated in such a way!<\/p>\n
Devon has a part of a geological World Heritage Site \u2013 the Jurassic Coast between Exmouth and Poole in Dorset \u2013 ranked in importance for its geology alongside the Grand Canyon, as well as other World Heritage Sites of global importance such as the Great Barrier Reef, the Taj Mahal and the Great Wall of China.<\/p>\n
Traditional buildings often reflect the local geology with granite cottages on Dartmoor; desert pebble or \u2018pobble\u2019 walls in East Devon, and grand limestone buildings of Plymouth, Torquay and Newton Abbot all giving us a clue to local rocks.<\/p>\n
Churches are often constructed of a variety of rocks, from the gravestones and the font to the construction materials and decorative features. But the walls themselves usually reflect the local rocks, including the volcanic lava churches of the Exeter and Crediton area and the famous \u2018Beer Stone\u2019 of East Devon, a band of \u00a0shell-sand limestone in the otherwise soft chalk, so valuable for carving window frames and other features that it was extensively mined. Even where the geology has no hard bands suitable for building, subsoil (often including permafrost sludge deposits from the last ice-age) was dug and mixed with straw to be used for cob buildings. Elsewhere valuable deposits of china and ball clays have been used for manufacturing tiles and pottery, but now have a wide range of other industrial uses \u2013 such as for producing nice white shiny paper!<\/p>\n
The quarries and cuttings from where these rocks have been excavated demonstrate much more than a cultural heritage, however, as they also reveal insights into 400 million years of Earth history \u2013 they are, in effect, windows through time. They record ancient seas, desolate deserts, fiery volcanoes and frozen wastelands – but just like any other aspect of our heritage, they need sensitive management to be able to continue to tell their fascinating stories. Left alone and forgotten these rocks exposures can become overgrown and inaccessible, they may become illegal dumping sites or simply filled in, often due more to a lack of awareness of their importance than any other motivation.<\/p>\n
In looking after this heritage, local communities can play a major role, not just in direct management such as controlling vegetation, but also in educating others about why geological sites are important.<\/p>\n
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Possible community activities include: <\/b><\/p>\n Please remember:<\/p>\n Not many people make a link between geology and wildlife but the rocks and other geological deposits of an area dictate the landscape, the plant communities and how both surface and ground water behaves. Limestone and chalk are alkaline and … Continue reading \n
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