Lyme Regis Marine Wildlife Area

The rocky shores surrounding Lyme Regis are home to an amazing variety of different creatures and plants including two protected animals the Pink Sea Fan (below) and the Sunset coral.

One of the best places to start if you are rock pooling is a place called Broad Ledge, which is the area below Church Cliff just east of the coastal defence scheme sea wall.

At the top of the shore the rocks and ledges are colonised by limpets and barnacles, the hardiest of sea shore animals. As you move down the shore the lush carpets of seaweeds begin to appear in a variety of colours including bright green, brown and red. In and around the rock pools sea anemones as well as prawns, crabs and small fish like the Blenny and Goby can be found. If you look carefully you may be lucky enough to find sea urchins and beautiful colonies of Star Sea Squirts underneath stones and rocks on the lower part of the shore

Beneath the waves even more fascinating and strange creatures can be found. The rock ledges which extend underwater are home to edible crabs, lobsters and a range of fish including Ballan wrasse and shoals of Pollock. An expert of camouflage, the Cuttlefish is also found in this area. They out wit their prey by changing colour to match their surroundings. Even further out, the wreck of the Baygitano is covered with life and provides a feeding ground for fish like Conger Eels,Sea Bass and Cuckoo Wrasse.