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The Natural Cymru Cycle explores the foundations of Wales long before the first people arrived.
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Through geology, fossils, and wildlife, it examines the forces that created the mountains, valleys, rivers, coastlines, ecosystems, and natural resources that shaped the country.
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More than a study of nature, it reveals how the land itself influenced everything that followed. The landscapes explored here became the settings for ancient beliefs, medieval kingdoms, historic communities, and industrial development.
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As the first cycle in The Cymru Cycles, it provides the foundations upon which every later story is built, showing that the story of Cymru begins with the land itself.
From ancient oceans and volcanic arcs to mountain building, glaciers, and exposed coalfields, Bedrock of Cymru traces the geological story of Wales across more than four billion years of Earth’s history. This richly illustrated guide explains how tectonic forces, climate, oceans, and deep geological time shaped the landscapes that define Cymru today.
From trilobites buried beneath ancient seas to giant Carboniferous forests preserved in stone, Fossils of Cymru explores the prehistoric life of Wales across hundreds of millions of years of Earth’s history. Blending palaeontology, geology, climate history, and landscape interpretation, the book reveals how changing environments preserved the remains of creatures and ecosystems within the rocks of Cymru.
From windswept sea cliffs and tidal estuaries to ancient rainforests, rivers, lakes, and upland bogs, Wildlife of Cymru explores the ecosystems that shape the natural world of Wales. This richly illustrated guide explains how geology, climate, water, and living organisms work together to create the diverse landscapes of Cymru and the wildlife that depends upon them.
Eryri's story began over 450 million years ago when powerful volcanoes built the foundations of Wales' highest mountains. Millions of years later, vast glaciers carved dramatic valleys, corries, razor-sharp ridges and crystal-clear lakes, creating the spectacular landscape seen today. As the ice retreated, forests spread across the valleys, wildlife returned and the first people gradually settled among the mountains. From ancient geological forces to the shaping power of ice, the natural history of Eryri explains not only its breathtaking scenery, but also why these mountains became one of Britain's most distinctive and enduring landscapes.
How Fire and Ice Created the Mountains of Eryri
1st July 2026
Nature Shapes the Valley
11th July 2026
The Tywi Valley's story began almost 470 million years ago beneath ancient tropical seas, where layers of mud, sand and volcanic ash formed the rocks beneath the landscape. Later, powerful mountain-building forces raised these rocks above the sea before glaciers widened the valley and the River Tywi created its broad, fertile floodplain. As the climate warmed, woodlands spread across the valley and wildlife flourished, creating an ideal environment for the first people to settle. The valley's remarkable geology, rivers and fertile soils laid the foundations for thousands of years of human history that would follow.
COMING SOON!
Journal highlighting the most recent research happening in Cymru
Explore natural features including cwm idwal, crib goch and yr wyddfa.
Explore natural features including Afon Tywi, rovk outcrops and black mountain.
The BGS Geology Viewer is the best place to begin if you want to understand the physical landscape of Wales. It provides an interactive geological map showing both the solid bedrock beneath the surface and the younger deposits left by rivers, glaciers and the sea.
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Whether you are visiting a mountain, beach, quarry, waterfall or river valley, the Geology Viewer allows you to identify the rocks beneath your feet and discover when they formed.
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How to investigate a location
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Open the BGS Geology Viewer.
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Enter the name or postcode of a location in Wales. You could search for a mountain, village, beach, quarry, cave or historic site.
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Zoom in until the coloured geological units become visible. Each colour represents a different geological formation.
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Turn on Bedrock Geology to investigate the solid rocks beneath the landscape. For example:
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the volcanic rocks of Eryri;
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the Old Red Sandstone of Bannau Brycheiniog;
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the Carboniferous Limestone of Gower;
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the slate-bearing rocks of northwest Wales.
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Turn on Superficial Deposits to examine younger material left by more recent geological processes. Look for deposits such as:
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glacial till;
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river terrace deposits;
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alluvium;
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peat;
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blown sand;
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landslip deposits.
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Open the map legend. The legend updates as you move around the map, displaying the geological formations currently visible.
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Select the name of a geological formation to open its entry in the BGS Lexicon of Named Rock Units. This explains the rock type, geological age, environment of deposition and geographical distribution.
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Understanding the results
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The name of a geological formation may seem unfamiliar at first, but most entries contain three important pieces of information:
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the formal name of the formation;
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the geological period in which it formed;
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the type of rock present.
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For example, you may discover that a landscape is underlain by Old Red Devonian sandstone, Arenig Ordovician volcanic tuft or Oxwich Head Carboniferous limestone.
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Begin with the plain description of the rock before exploring the more technical geological terminology. Remember that the colours on the map simply distinguish different formations—they do not indicate rock type on their own.
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For readers wishing to explore beyond the Geology Viewer, the British Geological Survey also provides the more advanced GeoIndex viewer, containing borehole records, geological memoirs and additional geological datasets.
While the British Geological Survey explains the rocks beneath Wales, Amgueddfa Cymru reveals the ancient life preserved within those rocks.
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The museum holds one of Britain's finest collections of Welsh fossils, minerals and rocks. Its website combines museum collections with articles explaining how life evolved through geological time, making it an excellent resource for understanding the changing environments that once existed across Wales.
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How to investigate Welsh fossils
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Open the Amgueddfa Cymru – Geology section of the museum website.
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Begin by reading one of the introductory articles about Welsh geology or palaeontology. These provide helpful background before exploring the collections themselves.
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Use the website search to explore either:
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a geological period, such as Ordovician, Silurian, Devonian, Carboniferous or Jurassic;
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a fossil group, such as trilobites, graptolites, brachiopods, corals, ammonites or fossil plants;
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or a Welsh locality where important fossils have been discovered.
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Browse the collection records to examine photographs and descriptions of individual fossil specimens.
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Read about:
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when the organism lived;
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the environment in which it lived;
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how it became fossilised;
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and what it tells us about the geological history of Wales.
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If the article or specimen record mentions a particular locality, compare it with the BGS Geology Viewer to identify the rock formation in which the fossil occurs.
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Understanding the results
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Every fossil represents more than a preserved organism, it records an ancient environment.
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For example:
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trilobites and graptolites indicate ancient seas;
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corals suggest warm tropical marine environments;
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fossil plants reveal ancient forests and swamp landscapes;
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ammonites indicate Jurassic oceans;
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dinosaur remains provide evidence of terrestrial environments that once existed in Wales.
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Rather than studying fossils individually, try linking them to the surrounding geology. Combining museum resources with the BGS Geology Viewer allows you to reconstruct the ancient landscapes in which those organisms lived.
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Many of the specimens featured online can also be seen in the geology galleries at National Museum Cardiff, making the museum an excellent destination for anyone wishing to continue their exploration beyond the website.
Natural Resources Wales is responsible for protecting many of Wales's most important landscapes, habitats and species. Its website contains interactive maps, conservation information and official documentation covering thousands of protected sites across the country.
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It is particularly useful for understanding why a landscape is important today, whether because of its geology, wildlife, habitats or a combination of all three.
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How to investigate a protected landscape
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Open the Natural Resources Wales page titled Find Protected Areas of Land and Sea.
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Enter the name, address or postcode of the location you wish to investigate.
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Open the Layer List and enable the layers most relevant to your interests. These include:
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Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs);
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National Nature Reserves;
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Special Areas of Conservation;
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Special Protection Areas.
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Select one of the highlighted areas to identify the protected site.
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Record the site's official name. This may differ from the name commonly used for the surrounding mountain, beach or nature reserve.
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Search for that official site name within the Natural Resources Wales designated-sites database.
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Read the site's citation and supporting documents to discover exactly why it has been protected.
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Understanding the results
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Not all protected sites are designated for the same reasons.
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Some are protected because of their geology, while others are important for their habitats, plants, animals or birds. Many contain several nationally important features.
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When reading a site citation, look for references to:
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geology;
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geomorphology;
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palaeontology;
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caves;
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glacial landforms;
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coastal processes;
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river systems;
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ancient woodland;
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peatland;
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rare plants;
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breeding birds;
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mammals, reptiles or invertebrates.
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The citation explains why that location is nationally significant and often identifies the key features that visitors should look for when exploring the landscape.
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Remember that protected status does not automatically provide public access. Always check access rights, public footpaths and local guidance before visiting.