Book Review

Bryan Edwards. Wildlife of the Jurassic Coast. Coastal Publishing. £4.95

I was delighted to see ‘Exploring the Undercliffs’ helping to illustrate the membership form of the Jurassic Coast Trust. The Trust aims to produce at least one publication each year, and the most recent, ‘Wildlife of the Jurassic Coast’ was launched at Lulworth Castle on 25 June by naturalist and broadcaster Chris Packham. He was delighted at the emphasis on invertebrates, with bugs, beetles, and beadlet anemones among the fine illustrations, many by the author.

The 96-page book includes superb images of over 100 species of plants and animals, and of stunning scenery; it is good value, and has maps of the entire World Heritage Coast. For ‘our’ part of this coast, from the most westerly Chalk to the landslips behind Monmouth Beach, the flowers of Rock Rose, Old Man’s Beard, Purple Gromwell and Tutsan are illustrated, while ‘our’ animals include a full page Rufous Grasshopper, Wood White butterfly and the moth, Morris’s Wainscot, which is confined to the cliffs between Sidmouth and Eype.

Bryan Edwards describes eight characteristic habitats, including undercliffs and scrub, soft cliffs, and coastal grassland, before exploring the coast from west to east. He reaches Lyme Regis after twelve pages, and then tempts Devon readers to discover more of the Dorset coast including the limestone of Purbeck and the grey shale cliffs and rock pools of Kimmeridge. For some, these treasures are a little too distant, but the next book, ‘Red Coast Revealed’, also from Coastal Publishing, will cover ground closer to home. But the present book should be enjoyed by all. It is an easy read by a knowledgeable author, supported by other specialists, who emphasise the wealth of wildlife along what Chris Packham called ‘One of the best places on the planet – and it’s all yours!’