Earth Collections: Pliocene database

The Pliocene Epoch extended from 5.3 - 1.8 million years ago.

Pliocene holdings in the University collections are quite small - numbering a little over 700 items, chiefly because deposition in the British Isles was limited to a few localities in East Anglia and Cornwall.

Pliocene faunas, especially in temperate latitudes, are less diverse than Miocene ones, and bear testimony to a trend towards a global cooling regime, presaging events in the Pleistocence.

The Pliocene collections though small, are reasonably diverse, including marine vertebrates and invertebrates from the UK, Belgium, Hungary and from as far afield as New Zealand, and terrestrial mammals from the UK, Italy and elsewhere.

Important collections include those of J. Parker and F. W. Harmer.

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Enquiries regarding the collections should be sent to: earth@oum.ox.ac.uk