Findrassie Site of Special Scientific Interest lies within Findrassie Wood near Elgin. It was designated a SSSI during a Geological Conservation Review (GCR) that was completed in 1989. Please stay on main path, the cache is just off the main track outside of the quarry area which should not be entered. A small cache with room for small items but NO PEN.
In the 1850's, the quarries of Findrassie, yielded some of the first fossil bones of reptiles to be found in the Elgin area and were from well preserved fossil remains of reptiles from the Triassic period around 225 million years ago. The reptile fossils of the Lossiemouth Sandstone Formation, amount to around 130 individuals that have been found largely within Spynie Quarry, Lossiemouth East Quarry and Findrassie Quarry sites.
When the Permian and Triassic rocks of the Elgin area were laid down, the geography and climate of Northern Scotland and Britain in fact it was land locked within the giant continent of Pangaea. Scotland was then between 15° and 20° north of the equator and was hot and arid. During these times the area was receiving sediment from the adjacent highland areas. The sediment was transported into the basins and deposited largely by river systems. At the lowest point in the basin, there were probably lake-land and river flood plain areas, which supported a fauna and flora. Away from the lake-land areas, sand dunes would have migrated under the power of the prevailing winds across the surface of the basin. As Pangaea was pulled apart, the area was inundated by the sea followed by a complex sequence of events in which the basin alternated between dry land and sea during the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods, with the accumulation of huge amounts of sediment which covered the Permian and Triassic deposits.
Millions of years of erosion, most recently during the Ice Age, produced the present day landscape, in which most of the Permian, Triassic and younger deposits have been removed, leaving behind remnants resting upon older underlying rocks. These older rocks are known as the "Old Red Sandstone" which were formed during the Devonian geological period, over 100 million years before the Permian and Triassic periods. A major fault that runs through the western portion of the Findrassie site and brings the Triassic reptile-bearing rocks in contact with the older Devonian aged rocks.
The skeletal remains of the animals yielded at Findrassie are generally complete and occur at a low level in the formation, just below the sand dune deposits. Some of the remains show evidence of being disturbed by scavengers prior to being buried by the dunes. The fossil remains found in the sandstone exposures can appear either as actual bony material, or as moulds, which formed when the bone "dissolved" leaving behind a cavity. Since the 1850’s the site has produced the remains of the following reptiles:
Stagonolepis robertsoni : An herbivore shaped rather like a crocodile 2.7m long. It had extensive armour around its body and possessed powerful digging limbs. It may have grubbed for plant roots or invertebrates with its shovel-like snout.
Ornithosuchus longidens : Medium to large sized carnivore of up to 3.5m in length. This carnivore had sharp dagger-like teeth and was probably used its large back legs for running and the smaller fore limbs for grasping, but could use all four for walking.
This site is managed by Pitgaveny Estates who have given permission for this cache. Access to the site of the quarry is restricted and would require further permission by the land owner. Fossil collection and hunting is prohibited in this area.
Further information regarding Findrassie Quarry SSSI can be found by contacting the Scottish Natural Heritage on 01343 541551 or by visiting http://www.snh.org.uk/snhi and choosing “Site Links” from the menu on the right hand side.
Further information on the fossils found in this and other SSSIs in the Elgin area can be found at Elgin Museum. Visit www.elginmuseum.org.uk for opening times and prices.
Thank you to Scottish Natural Heritage and Elgin Museum for their support and information. Images courtesy of Elgin Museum.