Abstract Sampling Bracklesham Group sediments of the WhitecliffBay (Isle of Wight) succession has led to the discovery of an assemblage of marine diatoms in a series of clays previously thought to be barren of microfossils. Although preserved as pyritized steinkerns, there is enough detail present to enable identification to generic and even species level in nearly all cases. The flora includes the stratigraphically restricted species Brightwellia hyperborea Grunow, Aulacodis-cus singiliewskyanus Barker & Meakin and Aulacodiscus subexcavatus Hustedt, which allow the assemblage to be placed within the Triceratium kanayae Diatom Zone of the Middle Eocene. This is equivalent to Calcareous Nannoplankton Zone NP15 and confirms a Lutetian age. The assemblage is dominated by the large centric species Fenestrella antiqua (Grunow) Swatman, previously unknown from strata later than earliest Eocene age in NW Europe, and this occurrence thus extends the range of this species. The diatoms include both low-latitude planktic species and more cosmopolitan coastal and nearshore taxa, attesting to strong connections to both southerly, warmer waters as well as to the north and east. Palaeoecological evidence from the diatom assemblage suggests the presence of water stratification, with eutrophic, nutrient-enriched surface water conditions encouraging the blooming of centric diatoms. This event may coincide with a worldwide increase in biogenic silica, coincident with a pulse of cooling and sea-level lowstand, all of which are related to the initiation of thermohaline circulation, as Antarctica split away from Australia and began to cool down. Mass sedimentation of the diatoms occurred at the end of this period, as improved water circulation led to mixing of the water mass and the return of larger calcareous benthic foraminifera. The presence of relatively nearshore, fairly shallow conditions during deposition of the diatomac-eous interval is indicated by the presence of several benthic diatom genera such as Aulacodiscus and Triceratium .

Four different types of paleosols are recognized in the late Eocene–earliest Oligocene Solent Group (Isle of Wight, UK), representing a patchwork of ecosystems. Weakly developed marsh paleosols (Entisol-like; histic Inceptisol-like) are the most common, and there are relatively fewer, slightly elevated Inceptisol-like and Alfisol-like paleosols present as well. The more developed paleosols allow for a quantitative paleoclimatic reconstruction. The Eocene-Oligocene transition is associated globally with the Oi-1 glaciation event. Some nonmarine sequences show long-term cooling and aridification associated with the glaciation. Reconstructed paleoclimatic conditions using Solent Group paleosols do not; instead, they reflect steady mean annual temperatures and gradually increasing mean annual precipitation. This result is consistent with previous evaluations of floral assemblages, which indicate consistent vegetative covering and niche floral elements spanning the Eocene-Oligocene transition. In contrast, there is a significant change in the mammalian faunas found throughout western Europe (Grande Coupure). The evidence for relatively static climatic conditions is not consistent with the scenario of a climatically driven turnover event for the Grande Coupure, although the impact of increased seasonality cannot be ignored.

Abstract Thomas Webster published his earliest geological observations by commission in Sir Henry Englefield’s Description of the Isle of Wight (1816), a work concerned as much with historic architecture and picturesque landscape as with geology. This paper shows how Englefield’s broad three-part agenda fostered the development of Webster’s specifically geological competence and sensibility. As a professional draftsman and architect, Webster was especially well equipped to translate Englefield’s architectural and picturesque idiom into a more geological register. Their collaboration also illustrates how well the style and content of local history – a traditional literary and learned genre – could be applied to geology. For Webster in particular, the image of ruins was essential for representing the historicity of geological phenomena. This paper adduces close readings of numerous passages from Englefield and Webster’s work to show how strongly the traditional language and research questions of antiquarianism continued to shape geology even as it became a professional specialization.

Abstract The Isle of Wight on the south coast of England has near continuous exposures of Early Cretaceous to Early Oligocene and Quaternary deposits and has long been regarded as a classic area of British geology. It has a long history of study dating back to the start of the nineteenth century. The identified threats to geoconservation are coastal erosion, coastal protection schemes aimed at preventing erosion and fossil collecting. Of these, however, erosion and collecting can also be seen as opportunities. Geology has influenced tourism since the eighteenth century which subsequently promoted both interpretation and conservation. Collecting of geological specimens for museum collections is documented as early as 1825. Site-based conservation began in 1951 with the notification of geological Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs) and Regionally Important Geological/geomorphological Sites (RIGS) have been notified since the mid 1990s. There has been a voluntary set of guidelines for fossil collecting and more recently the preparation of a Local Geodiversity Action Plan (LGAP) brought together diverse groups and individuals to begin developing a strategic approach to interpreting and conserving the island's geological heritage. The main outcome of the LGAP process has been to develop a partnership with a view to applying for membership of the European Geoparks Network.

Abstract As Curator of Experiments at the Royal Society of London, Robert Hooke (1635–1703) was too busy to have been considered a ‘geological traveller’. Yet he made fundamental geological observations whenever he did travel. He set these observations in a series of lectures he gave at the Royal Society over a period of some thirty years. These lectures were published posthumously by Richard Waller in 1705 as Lectures and Discourses of Earthquakes and Subterraneous Eruptions . Although his contemporary Nicolaus Stenonis, or Steno, has been recognized as the founder of geology, Hooke's more profound and compelling observations and explanations have been largely ignored by the geological community. There is also evidence that Hutton benefited considerably from Hooke's ideas. Hooke's writings show that he derived many of his geological hypotheses from his intimate knowledge of the processes taking place on the shores of his birthplace, the Isle of Wight. This paper presents what Hooke observed and described and is illustrated with photos taken by the author on the shores of the Isle of Wight.

Abstract Recent UK Government guidance has emphasized the need to take account of landslide problems in the land use planning process ( DoE 1990 , 1996 ). To assist the implementation of this policy, the then Department of the Environment (DoE) commissioned a number of demonstration projects to develop approaches to assess the potential for landsliding and to identify the best ways of in corporating this information in the planning process. In the UK there are many situations where historic development has resulted in the concentration of urban development and infrastructure on unstable ground. This is often on a scale such that total avoidance or abandonment are out of the question, as is recourse to large-scale and inordinately expensive engineering solutions (e.g. the Bath area, Lyme Regis, the South Wales valleys, etc. ( Jones & Lee 1994 )). Under these circumstances, detailed knowledge of slope instability is required so that pragmatic policies can be developed to assist communities to reduce risk. This approach has been pioneered by the detailed study of the Undercliff at Ventnor, on the south coast of the Isle of Wight, England ( Lee & Moore 1991 ; Lee et al.1991a , b , c ; Moore et al 1991 ).