One of my favourite things to do in the world is to collect crystals and stones – I love going to the Natural History Museum in London and visiting the crystal room. I’ve been doing some research on interesting crystals and stones that you might find in the ocean or when you visit the beach. Here they are with some interesting facts about them:
- Black coral – this is an interesting stone that is also the state gem of Hawaii as it is found in that region. Black coral feeds on plankton that washes in ocean currents.
- Limestone – the White Cliffs of Dover are made out of chalk which is a type of limestone.
- Burlington Chert – this is often pink, white or light brown and flakes irregularly.
- Syenite – this is a medium- to coarse-grained igneous rock related to granite which solidifies slowly in the Earth’s crust.
- Rhyolite – this is a silica-rich volcanic igneous rock also similar to granite.
- Dolomite – like limestone it is found in warm, shallow marine environments. It has a similar colour range to limestone.
- Undersea diamonds – surprisingly, diamonds can be found on the ocean bed.
