The time range and proportional distributions of Permian brachiopod families are summarized for the Permian Period. The ‘imperfection’ of the record is calculated from the apparent absences of families known to have survived. It is shown that the phylum changed in composition during the late Middle and Late Permian, with increased importance of Orthida, Strophalosiacea, and Oldhaminida at the expense of the Productacea. Changes were over-printed by loss of families, markedly later than the extensive contraction of shelf-seas, concurrent probably with significant changes in geo chemistry and trophic resources. A number of highly significant families survived into the time of renewed transgression during the Otoceras and Ophiceras ammonoid zones, usually classed at the base of the Triassic Period. The demise of most Permian families proceeded in concert with climatic changes, but the initial deaths of families appear to have been caused by some other unknown factor, which may have severely disrupted Permian communities and biomes, and caused them to respond more than usual to climatic oscillations.

The unfossiliferous Maestrichtian Summerfield Formation of Central Jamaica is composed entirely of hornblende andesite. A measured section shows a 90 m-thick lower unit of greenish-grey, crystal-rich, pumice-poor sandstones and rare mudstones, which interdigitate with shallow-marine rudist limestone. The upper 370 m comprise pink-coloured, pumice-rich fluviatile sandstones and conglomerates with devitrified ignimbrites at two horizons. Although no lavas are exposed it is likely that the erupted magma is represented by the hornblende andesite boulders of the conglomerates. Whole rock chemical analyses show the lava boulders to have around 65% SiO2 the ignimbrites 62%, the shallow-marine crystal-rich sandstones 58% and the interstratified mudstones 69%. The marine sandstones are concentrations of phenocrysts and the mudstones represent the finest glassy ash — originally the liquid which coexisted with the phenocrysts before eruption. These variations illustrate that after leaving the vent the pyroclastic material lost much fine glassy ash during the pyroclastic flow stage to produce crystal-enriched ignimbrites. Where the pyroclastic material was deposited in a shallow- marine environment it underwent further mechanical separation with loss of pumice by flotation, lithics and separation into crystals (sandstones) and glassy ash (mudstones). Subtraction of glass (rnudstone) from the magma (conglomerate boulders) shows that the ignimbrite composition can be obtained by loss of around 40 wt. % of glassy ash. The crystal-rich marine sandstones – although no longer containing the phenocryst minerals in their original magmatic proportions – represent a loss of about 60 wt. % glassy ash.

Large sediment-filled solution pipes in Middle Devonian Limestone near Newton Abbot are described. A succession of gravels, sands and clays is identified in the pipes, and the presence of umber, ochre and residual clays is noted. The unusually large size of the pipes is discussed and the infilling sediments are related to the Cretaceous and Tertiary formations of the nearby Bovey Basin and Haldon Hills.

The history of investigation of the rocks at present classed as Precambrian in the type region of the Cambrian system in the north-west corner of wales (Cambria), where that system was first named and its lower limit locally defined, is reviewed. The Arvonian volcanic series was originally included in the Cambrian System, the Monian metamorphic group remaining as Precambrian.

Material from the H. A. Nicholson collection, University of Aberdeen, provides information on three of Nicholson's species. Syntypes of Favistina calicina are described and the lectotype designated. Topotypes of Nyctopora billingsii are compared with an earlier description of the type thin sections. Columnopora cribriformis is considered synonymous with Calapoecia huronensis Billings, itself a poorly understood species; redescription of the type of the latter species shows it to be separate from C. canadensis Billings. Calapoecia ungava Cox is reinterpreted with a lectotype designated, and Nicholson material is placed with this species. All specimens are from eastern North America and of Upper Ordovician age excluding the Middle Ordovician N. billingsii and C. canadensis.

Pollen analyses have been made from sediments associated with vertebrate remains, including Arvicola cantiana, collected early in the 19th century from Ostend, Norfolk. They indicate that the fauna is of Cromerian zone IV date. Comparison with other pollen-dated Cromerian faunas implies that the early water vole Mimomys savini was replaced by the more advanced A. cantianaduring the second half of the Cromerian temperate stage. This is important in setting possible age limits to the faunas of such sites as Westbury, Mauer and Vérteszöllös.