The series of raised and modern spits and beaches which characterise t
he Dornoch Firth coastline are described. The beaches and spits in the
inner firth are relatively small, having developed during the mid-Hol
ocene with little-subsequent modification. In the central firth, large
spit complexes developed on the northern and southern shorelines exte
nding westwards during the mid-Holocene. However, during the later Hol
ocene, spit growth was towards the east on the southern shore and towa
rds the southwest on the northern shore. In the outer firth, spit and
beach development mainly occurred during the later Holocene. The devel
opment of spits at the mouth of the firth changed the wave energy envi
ronment in the central section and resulted in the marked changes in s
pit alignment in this area. The features also indicate that during the
rise and culmination of the Main Postglacial Transgression coarse ela
stic sediments derived from cliff erosion dominated. In contrast durin
g the later Holocene, when relative sea level fell, sand-sized materia
l derived from the nearshore and offshore zone predominated.