Ancient Forests Uncovered at Mount's Bay

This is amazing. An ancient submerged forest has been uncovered at Mount's Bay, near Penzance, following the recent storms.

Frank Howie/Cornwall Wildlife Trust

It seems that the stormy seas which wreaked havoc on the coast in early February has uncovered stumps of ancient oak, beech and pine trees. These large tree stumps are between 4,000 and 6,000 years old and have been preserved all this time by sand and shingle.

I'm not sure how long the ancient forest in Mount's Bay will remain visible before shifting sands cover them over again, but experts are warning visitors not to investigate.

Frank Howie, Cornwall Wildlife Trustee and chair of the county's Geoconservation Group, said: "The storms have revealed two to five metre trunks of pine and oak as well as the remains of hazel thickets with well-preserved cob nuts and acorns washed out by streams running across the beach.

"These forests were growing four or five thousand years when climate was slightly warmer than today.

"They were not flooded at the end of the last ice age which happened around 12,000 years ago.”

The above quote is an excerpt from an article in The Telegraph. To read full article go here:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/environment/10653204/Submerged-forests-revealed-by-UK-storms.html