SOME of them are a staggering 100 million years old and now they’re part of a new exhibition.

Oxford University Museum of Natural History has launched the exhibition Gault Clay Fossils to show rare finds dug up from a type of sediment found at the bottom of seabeds from across the UK.

Among the collection of fossils is an ammonite from Sutton Courtenay, near Abingdon, as well as more than 30 from other areas of Oxfordshire and Kent including shark teeth and crabs.

The fossils are among the same type that helped father of English geology William Smith complete the first nationwide geological map 200 years ago this year, and the exhibition is a small anniversary celebration.

Collections assistant at the museum Phil Hadland, who lives in Oxford and contributed to the collection, said: “They are rare so it is an opportunity to see things that are not always on display to the public. They are beautiful to look at and it is a real snap shot into life 100 million years ago.”

Education officer at the museum Chris Jarvis said: “Being able to see things like bite marks from fish on shells is remarkable. You can see a predator-prey relationship from 100 million years ago.”

* The free exhibition is open until September 21.