The Fleet Lagoon near Weymouth Dorset U.K.

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  This photo shows the shallowness of this part of the fleet. The image was taken at low tide.
  Please click on the image for a larger version. The Light coloured deposits can be seen on the aerial maps of the area as seen on the web. Live Maps may be used by either searching or clicking. See link below.

http://maps.live.com/

The red dots outline the very rich and extensive deposition sites. The species found are very similar to those of the estuarine sites of Dorset like Poole Harbour, but the arenaceous types are less numerous than at Poole.
The Village of East Fleet with its literary connections and ancient churches is an enchanting place. There are fossil types here but floatation has been used to reject them.

This is a photo of the water surface during the last stage of floatation, using material from East Fleet. It is a rich collection.

A General Guide to the Deposition Zones of the Foraminifera.

In the British Isles the tidal flows are from the SW Corner along the the South Coast. On the diagram this would be right to left, so the place to search is point B. This is valid for Swanage, Weymouth and Tor Bay. If the bays of the North East are examined then the flow is from the North Eastern corner of Scotland and on the diagram would be left to right and the site would be at A. This is valid for Scarborough and Filey. A quick look at the tide tables of ports either side of the bay in question, will soon determine direction if there is doubt. Of course few bays follow the exact symmetry of a diagram so a little common sense is required. Do not forget that blog images can be enlarged by a click of the mouse. In estuarine conditions like Poole Harbour,limited deposition zones can be identified by the concentration of shelly remains in the mud. Please see earlier posts. BD.

A glance at some of the non Arenaceous types at poole

This list is just a snapshot and by no means a complete listing.

Another look at species at Poole

These are some of the Arenaceous types, from the gastropod deposition site at Redland, Poole Harbour.

A deposition zone for Arenaceous types

In the open sea, the deposition sites in sheltered bays are pretty obvious ( see early blogs)but within the estuarine conditions of Poole Harbour do these exist? These gastropod shells seem to collect along with shelly mud in the middle tide marks of the harbour and the sievings (0.1mm-0.9mm)from this material are quite rich in arenaceous as well as other foraminifera. I have washed and sieved out the shells so that identification is possible. They are somewhat larger than 10mm. Click on the image for an enlarged version.