Contents - Fossils sites in Ireland
Section 1-1 - Fossil collecting in IrelandSection 1-2 - Where are the dinosaurs?Section 1-3 - The good news
Section 2-1 - Precambrian/CambrianSection 2-2 - OrdovicianSection 2-3 - SilurianSection 2-4 - DevonianSection 2-5 - Carboniferous/MississippianSection 2-6 - Carboniferous/Pennsylvanian
Chapter 3 - Fossil sites in Ireland
Section 3-4 - County Sligo - Streedagh Point - Mississippian
Section 1-1 - Fossil collecting in IrelandSection 1-2 - Where are the dinosaurs?Section 1-3 - The good news
Section 2-1 - Precambrian/CambrianSection 2-2 - OrdovicianSection 2-3 - SilurianSection 2-4 - DevonianSection 2-5 - Carboniferous/MississippianSection 2-6 - Carboniferous/Pennsylvanian
Chapter 3 - Fossil sites in Ireland
Section 3-4 - County Sligo - Streedagh Point - Mississippian
Resources
Resources - Fossil sites in Ireland
by Jutta Kruse, version April 2025
These are the full references for the short in-text citations of all chapters in Fossils sites in Ireland.
If you spot any errors or omissions, please let me know, Jutta at info@fossils.ie
Images ⓒ Jutta Kruse unless otherwise noted.
⇓ Reports
(GSI, County Geological Site Audits)
Geological Survey Ireland, County Geological Site Audits (all)
(GSI, Aran Islands, undated)
Geological Survey Ireland, Galway - County Geological Site Report - Aran Islands (undated)
(GSI, Benbulben, undated)
Geological Survey Ireland, Sligo - County Geological Site Report - Benbulben (undated)
(GSI, Booley Bay, undated)
Geological Survey Ireland, Wexford - County Geological Report - Booley Bay (undated)
(GSI, Hook overview, undated)
Geological Survey Ireland, Wexford - County Geological Report - Hook Head overview (undated)
(GSI, Hook, undated)
Geological Survey Ireland, Wexford - County Geological Report - Hook Head (undated)
(GSI, Kiltorcan, undated)
Geological Survey Ireland, Kilkenny - County Geological Site Report - Kiltorcan Old Quarry (undated)
(GSI, Poulsallagh, undated)
Geological Survey Ireland, Clare - County Geological Report - Poulsallagh (undated)
(GSI, Spanish Point, undated)
Geological Survey Ireland, Clare - County Geological Report - Spanish Point (undated)
(GSI, Streedagh Point, undated)
Geological Survey Ireland, Sligo - County Geological Report - Streedagh Point (undated)
(McAteer & Parkes, 2004)
McAteer, Claire & Parkes, Matthew, The Geological Heritage of Sligo - An audit of county Geological Sites in Sligo (Geological Survey of Ireland, Unpublished Report, 2004)
(Meehan et al., 2018)
Meehan, Robert & Hennessy, Ronan & Parkes, Matthew & Gatley, Sarah, The Geological Heritage of Wexford - An audit of county Geological Sites in county Wexford (2018)
(Parkes et al., 2005)
Parkes, Matthew & McAteer, Claire & Engering, Scott, The Geological Heritage of Clare (Clare County Council, 2005)
⇓ Books
(Best & Wignall, 2016)
Best, James L. & Wignall, Paul B. (eds.), A Field Guide to the Carboniferous Sediments of the Shannon Basin, Western Ireland (International Association of Sedimentologists Series, 2016)
(Drew, 2018)
Karst of Ireland: Landscape - Hydrogeology - Methods
Drew, David, Karst of Ireland: Landscape Hydrogeology Methods (Geological Survey Ireland, 2018)
(Hennessy et al., 2010)
Hennessy, Ronan & McNamara, Maria & Hoctor, Zena, Stone, Water and Ice – A Geology Trip through the Burren, (Burren Connect Project, 2010)
(Holland & Sanders, 2009)
Holland, Charles Hepworth & Sanders, Ian S. (eds), The Geology of Ireland (Dunedin Academic Press, Edinburgh, Second Edition, 2009)
(Higgs & Williams, 2018)
Higgs, Ken & Williams, Brian, Geology of the Dingle Peninsula - A field guide (Dublin, 2018)
(Meere et al., 2020)
Meere, Pat & MacCarthy, Ivor & Reavy, John & Allen, Alistair & Higgs, Ken, Geology of Ireland - A Field Guide, (The Collins Press, Cork, Second Edition, 2020)
(Rygel & Quinton, 2024)
Rygel, Michael & Quinton, Page, Sedimentary Geology: Rocks, Environments and Stratigraphy (SUNY Potsdam, 2024)
(Sleeman et al., 2004)
Sleeman, A. & McConnell, B. & Gatley, S., Understanding Earth Processes, Rocks and the Geological History of Ireland (Geological Survey of Ireland, Dublin, 2004)
(Wyse Jackson, 2019)
Wyse Jackson, Patrick N., Introducing Palaeontology (Dunedin, Second edition, 2019)
⇓ Journal articles
(Ausich & Sevastopulo, 2001)
Ausich, William & Sevastopulo, George, ‘The Lower Carboniferous (Tournaisian) Crinoids from Hook Head, County Wexford, Ireland’, Monographs of the Palaeontographical Society, 216 (31 December 2001), pp 1-136
(Blake et al., 2017)
Blake, Daniel & Donovan, Stephen & Harper, David, ‘A new Silurian ophiuroid from the west of Ireland’, Irish Journal of Earth Sciences, 35 (2017), pp 57-66
(Harper et al., 1996)
Harper, D. & MacNiocaill, C. & Williams, S., 'The palaeogeography of early Ordovician Iapetus terranes: An integration of faunal and palaeomagnetic constraints', Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, 121, 3-4 (1996), pp 297-312
(Herbosch et al., 2011)
Herbosch, Alain & Verniers, Jacques, ‘What is the biostratigraphic value of the ichnofossil Oldhamia for the Cambrian: a review’, Geologica Belgica, 14, 3-4 (2011), pp 229-248
(Hetherington et al., 2016)
Hetherington, Alexander & Berry, Christopher & Dolan, Liam, 'Networks of highly branched stigmarian rootlets developed on the first giant trees’, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 113, 24 (2016), pp 6695-6700
(Kinahan, 1856)
Kinahan, John Robert, ‘The Genus Oldhamia (Forbes): Its Character, Probable Affinities, Modes of Occurrence, and a Description of the Nature of the Localities in Which It Occurs in the Cambrian Rocks of Wicklow and Dublin’, The Transactions of the Royal Irish Academy, Vol. 23 (1856), pp 547-561
(Korn, 2007)
Korn, Dieter, 'Goniatiten von der Namurian/Westfal-Grenze im Rheinischen Schiefergebirge (Cephalopoda, Ammonoidea; Oberkarbon; Deutschland)', Geol. Paläont. Westf., 69 (Münster, November 2007), pp 5-45
(MacGabhann et al., 2007)
MacGabhann, Breandán & Murray, John & Nicholas, Chris, ‘Ediacaria booleyi: Weeded from the Garden of Ediacara?’, Geological Society London Special Publications (2007)
(Mángano et al., 2002)
Mángano, M. Gabriela & Rindsberg, Andrew, ‘Carboniferous Psammichnites: Systematic Re-Evaluation, Taphonomy and Autecology’, Ichnos, 9 (1 January 2002), pp 1-22
(Satchell, 2024)
Satchell, Kieran G., ‘A re-evaluation of Scelidosaurus remains from Ireland and the importance of apomorphy-based identifications’, Proceedings of the Geologists' Association,
Vol. 135, Iss. 3, (June, 2024), pp 349-351
(Scrutton, 1965)
Scrutton, Colin T., ‘Periodicity in Devonian coral growth’, Palaeontology, Vol. 7, Pt. 4 (January 1965) pp 552-556
(Simms et al., 2021)
Simms, Michael & Smyth, Robert & Martill, David & Collins, Patrick & Byrne, Roger, ‘First dinosaur remains from Ireland’, Proceedings of the Geologists' Association, Vol. 132, Iss. 6 (December 2021), pp 771-779
(Somerville et al., 2009)
Somerville, Ian & Cózar, Pedro & Aretz, Markus & Herbig, Hans-Georg, ‘Carbonate facies and biostromal distribution in a tectonically controlled platform in northwest Ireland during the late Viséan (Mississippian)’, Proceedings - Yorkshire Geological Society, 57, 3-4 (November 2009), pp 165-192
(Stössel, 1995)
Stössel, Iwan, 'The discovery of a new Devonian tetrapod trackway in SW Ireland', Journal of the Geological Society, 152:2 (1995), pp 407-413
(Stössel et al., 2016)
Stössel, Iwan & Williams, Edward & Higgs, Kenneth, ‘Ichnology and depositional environment of the Middle Devonian Valentia Island tetrapod trackways, southwest Ireland’, Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology, Vol. 462 (2016), pp 16-40
(von Loga, 2006)
von Loga, Sven, 'Ediacarium - ein neues geologisches System', Steinkern.de (published 2006/08/20) [Accessed 2025/01/03]
⇓ Unpublished theses
(Doyle, 1989)
Doyle, E.N., ‘The Biostratigraphy and Sedimentology of the Lower Silurian (Llandovery) rocks of north Galway’ (Unpublished Ph.D. thesis, National University of Ireland, 1989).
(Rider, 1969)
Rider, M.H., 'Sedimentological studies in the West Clare Namurian, Ireland and the Mississippi River Delta', Vol. 1 & Vol. 2 (Unpublished Ph.D. thesis, Imperial College London, 1969)
⇓ Maps and tables
(GSI, 2006)
Geological Survey Ireland, Bedrock Geological Map of Ireland 1:500,000 (2006) [8.3MB]
Contains Irish Public Sector Data (Geological Survey Ireland) licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) licence.
(International Commission on Stratigraphy, 2024)
Cohen, K.M. & Finney, S.C. & Gibbard, P.L. & Fan, J.-X. (International Commission on Stratigraphy 2013; updated December 2024), Episodes 36: 199-204
(Menning & Hendrich, STDK-V, 2022)
Die Stratigraphische Tabelle von Deutschland Kompakt 2022: Känozoikum und Mesozoikum (front)
Deutsche Stratigraphische Kommission (Hrsg.; Koordination und Gestaltung: Menning, M. & Hendrich, A.) (2022): Stratigraphische Tabelle von Deutschland Kompakt 2022 (STDK 2022); Potsdam (GFZ), Vorderseite
(Menning & Hendrich, STDK-R, 2022)
Die Stratigraphische Tabelle von Deutschland Kompakt 2022: Paläozoikum und Präkambrium (back)
Deutsche Stratigraphische Kommission (Hrsg.; Koordination und Gestaltung: Menning, M. & Hendrich, A.) (2022): Stratigraphische Tabelle von Deutschland Kompakt 2022 (STDK 2022); Potsdam (GFZ), Rückseite
⇓ Images
(Geological Survey Ireland/3-Ordovician)
[Accessed 2025/01/03]
(Geological Survey Ireland/James Bannon)
Image © Geological Survey Ireland, James Bannon, ‘The tetrapod trackway (Devonian), Valentia Island, Kerry’ (captured 2019-08-12). (Permission to use from Geological Survey Ireland)
[Accessed 2025/01/03]
(SEPM STRATA, Paleogeographic interpretation)
Paleogeographic interpretation of the Namurian Geology of the Clare Basin. Graphic adapted from: SEPM STRATA, County Clare Ireland, Fig. 5: Paleogeographic interpretation of the Namurian Geology of Clare Basin. (Used with permission of SEPM STRATA)
[Accessed 2025/01/03]
(Woudloper, Iapetus fossil evidence)
Adapted from: ‘Iapetus fossil evidence’, by Woudloper - Own work, CC BY-SA 1.0
[Accessed 2025/01/05]
⇓ Videos
(Video: Higgs, Silurian Rocks)
Higgs, Ken, ‘Silurian Rocks of the Dingle Peninsula’
[Accessed 2025/01/03]
(Video: PBS Eons, Cambrian-PTE)
[Accessed 2025/01/08]
(Video: PBS Eons, Ediacaran)
[Accessed 2025/01/08]
(Video: Simms, Dinosaurs)
[Accessed 2025/01/03]
(Video: @tirulero1, Valentia Tetrapod)
The Valentia Tetrapod Trackway
@tirulero1, 2013, 'The Valentia Tetrapod Trackway’
[Accessed 2025/01/03]
⇓ Websites
Website: Burren and Cliffs of Moher UNESCO Geopark
Burren Geopark, Fossil Collecting Policy
[Accessed 2025/01/03]
Website: Digital Atlas of Ancient Life
Paleontological Research Institution (Ithaca, New York), The Digital Atlas of Ancient Life project
[Accessed 2025/01/10]
Website: European Geoparks
[Accessed 2025/01/03]
Website: Geological Survey Ireland
Geological Survey Ireland, County Geological Site (CGS) audits
[Accessed 2025/01/03]
Website: National History Museum UK
McNish, James, ‘Can you find dinosaurs in Ireland?’
[Accessed 2025/01/05]
Website: SEPM STRATA/County Clare Ireland
[Accessed 2025/01/03]
Website: Steinkern
[Accessed 2025/01/03]
Website: University College Cork, Ireland’s Fossil Heritage
University College Cork, Ireland’s Fossil Heritage
[Accessed 2025/01/03]