Glenmard Wood fossils and fossil collecting |
Not for Children
This site is not suitable for children as this quarry is occasionally worked. Some of the facies can be dangerious. |
Long Walk
The quarry is easy to find, just follow the trackway all the way through the woods and at the opposite side of the woods, you will pass a large house, and the road will veer north. From here you will see the quarry. The problem is that it is a long walk, nearly 2 miles, and with a lot of weight of fossils to bring back. |
Small quarry
This quarry is used to repair local roads, and is owned by the locals here. DO NOT visit, unless you have prior permission from the local farmer. |
Private Quarry
Permission Required
This is a occasional worked quarry, but owned by the locals to repair their roadway. You will need permission from the local farmer to use this site. |
If you collect fossils in Scotland, the advice on best practice in the collection and storage of fossil specimens, set out in the Scottish Fossil Code, applies to you. The Code may be viewed and downloaded from www.snh.org.uk/fossilcode.
 
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Care should be taken if collecting near the back end of the quarry, near the faces, these can be dangerous and can crumble at any time, and they are often very steep as the quarry is still worked occasionally. Keep away from the digger. |
| Last updated: |
2010 |
| last visited: |
2008 |
| Written by: |
Alister and Alison Cruickshanks |
 
Geological Tools
A pick and plenty of paper is mostly all you need. You don’t want to take too much as you will have a lot to take back, but be sure to take plenty of drink with you for the walk.
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For trilobites further locations are Glenmard Wood, Ardwell Bay and Aldons, or in Shropshire you can try Betton Dingle, Mortimer Forest, Hillend, Wenlock Quarry, Shadwell Quarry, Upper Millichope, Hope, and The Onny Trail. In South West Wales, you can also find Silurian Trilobites from Marloes Sands and Abereiddy
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It may be quite a long walk, but it’s worth it. As soon as you get to the site, when first looking at the scree, it appears as though there are few fossils here, but as soon as you start slitting the mudstone, you will start to make the finds.
You can find all kinds of fossils in excellent condition here including Brachiopods, bivalves, gastropods, Orthoceras, Trilobites and Corals. Some of the zones in the mudstone are more productive than others, once you find a really productive bed, you can keep splitting to find more and more fossils. You can also take samples of this home for carefully processing for smaller shells. The number of different fossil molluscs is quite staggering. They are also white, which clearly shows up against the dark mudstone.
The best beds tend to be those to the South West of the quarry, there is plenty of good blocks lying around the quarry floor. Remember to take plenty of paper to wrap your finds.
Ordovician Mudstone scree slope
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Ordovician, 445mya |
This highly productive Ordovician mudstone is of Ashgill age, and is of the Drummuck Group. The mudstone is a blue-grey-sometimes greenish colour and splits very easily. This falls under the Cautleyan stage.
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Related Books |
Microscopes |
Geology Supplies |
The best guide available for this area is the small booklet on Girvan published by the Geological Survey and available from our online store. It is a sheet explanation and covers the geological formations around Girvan in great detail, along with the fossils found and further locations not featured on this website.
Click here for this book.
The standard geological map of Girvan is also an excellent buy showing you exactly where the best beds are, and is related to from the sheet explanation.
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At most locations, you can find microfossils. You only need a small sample of the sand. You then need to wash it in water and sieve using a test sieve. Once the sand is processed, you can then view the contents using a microscope.
We have a wide range of microscopes for sale, you will need a Stereomicroscope for viewing microfossils. The best one we sell is the IMXZ, but a basic microscope will be fine. Once you have found microfossils, you will need to store these microfossils.
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Test Sieves are used when searching for microfossils. Microfossils can be found in many locations, and all you need is a small amount of sample such as clays, sands and shales, or if you have acid, limestone, oolite or chalk.
Our UKGE Store sells Endecotts Test Sieves, which are the highest in accuracy and extremely durable and long lasting. These Test Sieves are fantastic for microfossils. Endecotts Test Sieves come in a variety of sizes, frame material and types, they are certificated to EU Standards. |
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From Girvan, follow the B741 to the North East of the town. You will cross the railway line 3 times. After the third crossing, the B741 will take a right turn towards Dailly. Do not take this road.
