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Abbey Wood Fossils

Abbey Wood is a geologicallocality situated in a park insouth-east London.

It is famous, world-wide, for itsfossil sharks teeth and shells.

It was first mentioned in 1872 byWilliam Whitaker of the BritishGeological Survey, who foundsharks teeth in the rabbit holes.

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What is Abbey Wood?What is Abbey Wood?

It contains a mixture of freshwater,estuarine and marine shells, as wellas sharks teeth, fish, crocodile, andturtle bones and rare mammal teeth.

The Abbey Wood Shell Bed is an ancient shell-bank, amixture of sand, shells and round black flint pebbles.

It was laid down in a shallow tropical sea, close to theshore, about 54.5 million years ago.

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How this works

Angel Shark

Squatina prima

Teeth & vertebrae

Picture of real specimens imaged on a flat bedscanner.

A white line between specimens means thatthere are two views of the same fossil.

Scale Bars - 5mm in Green - 1cm - in Orange.

Common (vernacular) name - in Yellow.

Scientific (Latin) name - in Green.

Part of animal - where not obvious - in Purple.

Reconstruction of the living animal.

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Sharks Teeth

Sand shark Striatolamia macrota

Sand shark Sylvestrilamia teretidens

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Shark Remains

Shark vertebra

Sand shark Gluekmanotodus heinzelini

Sand shark

Jaekelotodus robustus

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Shark and Rabbit Fish Teeth

Sand shark Palaeohypotodus

rutoti

Rabbit fish or Chimaeroid Amylodon eocaena

Lower plate

Rabbit fish or Chimaeroid Elasmodus hunteriUpper anterior plate

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Ray Remains

Angel Shark Squatina prima

Teeth & vertebrae

Guitar fish Hypolophodon sylvestris

Dermal denticles (top) & teeth

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Bony Fish Remains

Gar pike Lepisosteus suessionensis

Teeth, scale & vertebrae

Extinct wrasse

Phyllodus toliapicusUpper palate

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Bony Fish Remains

Lady fish Albula eppsi

Otoliths (ear stones) & upper palate

Sturgeon Acipenser toliapicus

Dermal scute

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Bony Fish Remains

Bowfin Amia barroisi

Lower jaws

Extinct wrasse

Diaphyodus sauvagiPaired upper and

lower palates

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Bony Fish Remains

Unidentified vertebrae

BarracudaPelamys palaeocenica

dentary (lower jaw) andquadrate bone

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Reptile Remains

Soft shelled turtleTrionyx

Carapace (upper shell)

Dwarf crocodileTeeth

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Mammal Remains

3rd molar tooth Hyopsodus wardi

RodentUpper incisor tooth

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Bivalve molluscs

Oyster

Ostrea bellovacina

Extinct ClamTellinocyclas tellinoides

Marsh clam

Corbicula cuneiformis var. forbesii

Extinct ClamCaestocorbula sp .

Nut clam

Nucula gracilenta.

Extinct Clam Lentidiumarnouldii

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Bivalve molluscs

Bittersweet cockleGlycymeris plumstediensis

Extinct cockle Nemocardium plumstedianum

Mussel Mylilus mitchelli

Ship wormTeredo sp.

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Gastropod molluscs

Moon snail

Euspira bassae

Banded nerite

Nerita semilugubris

Moon snail Euspira glaucinoides

Banded pea shellTheodoxus pisiformis

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Gastropod molluscs

Marsh creeper

Brotia melanoides

Freshwater snail

Melanopsisantidiluviana

Marsh creeper

Tympanotonus funatus

Auger shell Mirula plicatula

Clam sucker

Odostomia sp.

Freshwater snail

Bayania triticea

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Gastropod molluscs

Fissured false olivePseudoliva fissurata

Whelk Eocantharus

cf. latus

Whelk

Pseudoneptunea subnodosa

Whelk

Streptolathyrus sp.False limpet

Sigapatella echinulata

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Trace Fossils

Holes in oyster shell Entobia sp.

Burrowing sponge

Predation boringsOichnus paraboloides

Attributed to Euspira spp.

(below)

Mud pellet burrowOphiomorpha nodosa

Callianassid shrimp