Ebook: Quaternary of South-West England

STRUCTURE OF THE VOLUME AND TERMINOLOGY USED This book contains scientific descriptions of 63 localities (Figure A) of at least national importance for Quaternary geology, geomorphology and environmental change in South-West England. These sites were selected by the Geological Conservation Review and are accordingly designated 'GCR' sites. Chapter 1 provides an introduction to the Quaternary. Chapter 2 synthesizes the geomorphological development and Quaternary history of the region, and outlines the principles involved in site selection. The individual GCR site descriptions form the core of the book. In the following chapters, sites are arranged and described in broad geographic areas and by research topic. This is necessitated by the widely disparate nature of the field evidence in Soutb­ West England: sites demonstrating the full range of Quaternary and geomorphological features are not evenly and conveniently dispersed throughout the region, and some areas have significant gaps. Neither do the individual chapters contain sites that neces­ sarily equate with particular site selection networks. Rather, the chosen chapter headings provide the least repetitive means of describing the sites and background material. Where possible, a chronological approach, from oldest to youngest, has been used to describe sites within a given chapter. Again, this approach is not always possi­ ble, and a group of sites may show variations on landform or Stratigraphie evidence broadly within one major time interval or chronostratigraphic stage; inevitably there are many overlaps.

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This volume describes in detail the most important Quaternary sites in South-West England, some of which have been the subject of scientific research for over 150 years. In describing the geomorphological heritage of these sites, this volume offers a remarkable account of how the natural environment responded, in terms of landforms, deposits and processes, and animal, plant and human communities, to the profound climatic fluctuations that have characterized the Quaternary - approximately the last two million years of geological time.
The clear, concise descriptions of the 63 nationally important GCR sites in this volume document a fascinating history of intense landscape and environmental changes within a relatively small area. how these landscapes came into being, the forces that shaped them, and the climatic extremes which drove these changes are some of the themes explored.
This fully-illustrated volume provides the most up-to-date and comprehensive scientific text on the Quaternary history of South-West England, and its 1,300 cited references form the most complete bibliography on this subject. This book will appeal to everyone with an interest in Quaternary history, and it will be an indispensable reference tool for students and lecturers, as well as for environmental agencies, conservation consultants and government planning authorities.