Our team

Wight Coast Fossils was established in 2019 by young island fossil hunters and university students Theo Vickers, Jack Wonfor and Megan Jacobs. Our aim is to establish a professional and bespoke guided fossil hunting and educational experience, that allows people of all ages, interests and abilities to enjoy, share and discover the experience of fossil hunting on the Isle of Wight, and work towards conserving and protecting the island’s internationally unique geological heritage.

Theo Vickers

Theo is a marine biology undergraduate at the University Of Portsmouth and a qualified Marine Mammal Surveyor. Born on the Island and collecting fossils from the age of 6, Theo has made several scientifically important and rare finds and is an experienced local fossil hunter and guide, with an in-depth knowledge of the Island’s geology and palaeontology. Theo’s main interests are the Island’s fossil mammals and ancient humans, and in 2017 he stumbled upon the tooth of a rare hornless rhinoceros on the Island’s northwest coast, one of only several specimens to ever be found in the UK. When not searching the island’s beaches for the remains of prehistoric life, Theo is a marine biology student and underwater photographer. His underwater wildlife films and photography have been featured locally, including as part of the Secrets Of The Solent Project by the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust.

Megan Jacobs

Megan is a palaeontology PhD student at the University of Baylor, Texas. Born on the Isle of Wight, Megan spent most of her childhood fossil collecting with her father, and over the last 18 years has amassed a huge collection and helped with excavating dinosaurs on the island’s south coast. Megan has made many important finds, such as a partial crocodilian and a possible Eotyrannus tooth. In recent years, Megan has undertaken fieldwork and research in Morocco, Texas, Germany, Wales and Dorset, and has published extensively on ichthyosaurs, theropods and pterosaurs, including several new genus and species. Most recently the new ichthyosaur, Thalassodraco etchesi from the Etches Collection, Dorset. She is an experienced fossil guide on the island’s beaches providing guided walks for over 6 years.

Jack Wonfor

Jack is an undergraduate palaeontology student at the University of Portsmouth. Jack is a lifelong fossil collector with a keen interest in our abundant Cretaceous ammonites and other marine molluscs. From a young age, Jack has accumulated a vast collection of museum quality specimens. In 2020 Jack disovered a titanic Tropaeum bowerbanki ammonite from Whale Chine, possibly one of the largest specimens ever found.

Interested to find out what our team get’s up to when we’re not down the beach? Check out our new ‘Out of Hours‘ Blog, for all the updates on our news and recent finds!