General Features

Sandy beaches and rocky shores are scattered along the Durham coast offering peace, quiet and abundant wildlife to the curious visitor.

Durham's coastal environment was devastated by heavy industry throughout the 20th Century.

Wildlife and habitat suffered heavily, discouraging visitors and leaving local communities with little sense of pride in their unique environment.

Souter Lighthouse taken by Terry Cavner

The coastal communities have suffered widespread social and economic deprivation since the closure of coal mines in the early 1990s.

Despite this, the coastal area is a rich natural and cultural asset, important to the regions economy.

Coastal sand dunes

Crimdon Sands represents the best dune system the Durham Heritage Coast area has to offer.

It displays typical dune zones and plant succession.

Their value to wildlife is significant in terms of plant and invertebrate life.

Additionally a Little Tern colony took up residence in 1995 and breeds on the nearby beaches.

Rocky coast at Whitburn taken by Terry Cavner

Rocky shores

Rocky shores are complex habitats with many variables influencing them.

They are highly diverse environments graded from the terrestrial to marine.

Trow Rocks, south to Whitburn and at Roker are outcrops of Magnesian Limestone forming the gives rocky shores.

South of Seaham the most biodiverse location is Blackhall Rocks.

These rocky shores suffer from visitors causing habitat disturbance and species depletion.

Pollution is a particular threat as the nature of the habitat concentrates pollutants such as oil.

Also litter threatens species using these habitats.

Clear water and clean rocks allow rich kelp beds

Kelp beds

Kelps make up the UK's largest native algae.

Two species have been recorded on the Durham Heritage Coast; tangle and rough kelp.

There are few extensive kelp beds but some are exposed at low tide e.g. at Featherbed rocks at Seaham.

Kelp beds can provide a rich habitat for coastal and marine communities and are especially significant in providing nursery areas for invertebrates and fish and are therefore important in maintaining healthy fish stocks.

Seaham is the only place on the Heritage Coast where water is sufficiently clear and rocks are unsilted to allow growth of kelps.

Basking Sharks are seen off the Durham coast

Fish species

The Basking Shark is the largest fish species to occur in UK waters, growing up to 11m in length. It is also the second largest shark and fish in the world.

Harmless to humans, this filter feeder lives in open waters migrating towards the shore in the summer months where they are sometimes sighted at the surface.

Along the Durham Heritage Coast there have been frequent sightings during the summer and several strandings and catches.

Their populations are at risk through exploitation, competition for prey and habitat degradation.

Herring... the Silver Darlings are returning

Commercial fish species

They are generally the most heavily exploited stocks such as cod, haddock, hake and plaice.

In the Heritage Coast area herring and hake are caught in small numbers largely due to the decline in other stocks.

There are major summer and autumn spawning grounds off the North East coastline.