Submerged Forest at Pett Level

After the last Ice Age about 6000 years ago, the Sea Level was about 150ft lower than todays level, due to the Polar Regions having significantly more ice than at present. A forest grew under the sea at Cliff End near the village of Pett , at a time when England was joined by a land bridge to the continent.

As the climate warmed so the ice at the Polar Regions melted, and the Sea Level rose above the level of the forest, we believe about 3 metres higher than the current level. The forest was drowned, and the wood preserved in the salt water and mud. Since the 16th century, the sea levels have dropped, and at low tide, the bases of the trees are now visible.

This fossilised forest houses a wide range of sea creatures, including piddocks which are bivalve molluscs.

Ancient Forest preserved by the sea