| Previous Site |
Earth Science Conservation Review
| Yate's Corner - site of local interest | Down |
| Site number: | 758 | ||
| Locality Type: | Inland exposure | Status: | local interest |
| Grid Reference: | J394623 Centroid | ||
| Google maps: | 54.49042,-5.84874 | ||
| County: | Down | Council area: | Lisburn & Castlereagh City Council |
| Period: | Silurian, Ordovician | ||
| Stages: | Ashgill, Llandovery, Llandeilo | ||
| Lithostrat: | Strangford Group, Lessans Formation | ||
| Site Description | |
|---|---|
| Highlights: | |
In a broken succession of rocks centred around Yate’s Corner, there are exposures of the Lessans Formation (Upper Ordovician) and the succeeding Strangford Group (Lower Silurian). The Lessans Formation consists of graptolitic mudstones and an interval of faulted grey and khaki-brown barren mudstones, that separate them from mudstones containing Silurian (Llandovery) graptolites to the northeast. | |
| Description: | |
The predominantly argillaceous Lessans Formation (Llandeilo to Ashgill) consists of black graptolitic mudstones and grey barren mudstones and siltstones. The broken succession at Yate’s Corner, established from the southeast to the northwest, contains Nemagraptus gracilis, Dicranograptus clingani and Pleurograptus linearis Zone graptolitic mudstones including: Climactograptus bicornis (Hall) Cryptograptus tricornis? (Carruthers) Dicellograptus sextans (Hall) {common} Dicranograptus sp. {indet.} ?Didymograptus superstes Lapworth {abundant frag.} Glossopgraptus? {frag.} Hallograptus bimucronatus (Nicholson) Nemagraptus gracilis (Hall) Orthograptus whitfieldi (Hall) The interval of faulted grey and khaki-brown barren mudstones separates these Ordovician mudstones from pale and medium grey mudstones and siltstones to the north west which contain Coronograptus gregarius Zone graptolites (Llandovery) (Pollock and Wilson, 1961). | |
| Importance: | |
This area is of some scientific value as it is one of only a small number of sites across this part of north County Down that exposes graptolitic mudstones from both the Upper Ordovician Lessans Formation and the Lower Silurian Strangford Group. | |
| Keywords | |
|---|---|
| Rocks: | Mudstone, Siltstone |
| Fossil Groups: | Graptolite |
| Fossil List: | Climactograptus bicornis (Hall), Cryptograptus tricornis? (Carruthers), ?Didymograptus superstes Lapworth, Dicellograptus sextans (Hall), Dicranograptus sp., Glossopgraptus?, Hallograptus bimucronatus (Nicholson), Nemagraptus gracilis (Hall), Orthograptus |
| Access | |
|---|---|
| Approach: | This site is located 4km southeast of Carryduff. |
| Uses | |
| Educ. Level: | The site is of limited educational value to third level students. |
| Record type: | SLNCI Report | ||
| Entered by: | E M Porter | ||
| Last updated: | 09/10/03 | ||
| Enlander, I., Dempster, M. & Doughty, P., 2026. Yate's Corner - site of local interest, County Down, site details. [In] Earth Science Conservation Review. https://www.habitas.org.uk/escr/site.php?item=758. Accessed on 2026-11-07. |
| Previous Site |