Shingle beach

The gravel (shingle) typically consists of smooth, spheroidal to flattened, pebbles, cobbles, and sometimes small boulders, generally in the 20 to 200 millimetres (0.8 to 7.9 in) size range.

Shingle beaches form in wave-dominated locations where resistant bedrock cliffs provide gravel-sized rock debris.

They are also found in high latitudes and temperate shores where the erosion of Quaternary glacial deposits provide gravel-size rock fragments.

The ecosystems formed by this association of rock and sand allow colonization by a variety of rare and endangered species.

[5] Shingle beaches are rare, made up of thousands of smooth rocks with varying geological qualities.