Pliosaur Jaw

One of the first large fossils Steve Etches found which put him firmly on the road of becoming a palaeontologist was the jaw of a giant Pliosaur. However, the story of its discovery is complex and shows that patience can be rewarded.

Steve first discovered some bones associated with a recent rockfall which he realised belonged to a giant Pliosaur. Over the following months he returned to the same location and gradually picked up more pieces of bone. He eventually worked out where in the cliff the bones were falling from and that it was too high and too dangerous to attempt to reach that level.

He patiently returned many times over a period of four years waiting for the cliff to erode back far enough for the remaining bones to fall down onto the beach.

After four years the rest of the specimen fell down including the tip of the jaw.

After a number of further collecting visits’ he pieced the fragments back together to reveal an almost complete giant 2m jaw of a huge predatory pliosaur which is now one of the centre pieces of the museums display.

Watch the full story by clicking on the You Tube video link above to discover how this find hooked Steve on specialising in collecting from the Kimmeridge Clay Formation and ultimately to the building of the museum to house his collection.

The Etches Collection Museum is located in Kimmeridge, Dorset on the World Heritage Coast and contains a nationally accredited and designated collection of over 2500 fossils from the Upper Jurassic Kimmeridge Clay Formation. The collection provides a major resource for education and research as well as being a major tourist attraction.