Bee chafers are extremely rare in Essex. Trichius fasciatus is western species, not recorded from Essex. The second British species, Trichius zonatus, is extremely rare in Britain, and has been recorded on only a handful of occasions in southern England – Tilbury, Essex 1938 ; Sheppey , Kent 1946 and Marlow, Bucks in 1947 and 1949, Hackney Marshes on Essex/Middlesex border in 2004. It is doubtfully British, but in 2004 there may have been an established population in the vicinity of Hackney Marshes, since two individuals were noted feeding on bramble blossom. To confirm which species, you really need to try and capture the beetle and send it to a beetle specialist like our County Recorder for identification. Either species would be very exciting.
Your Forum
This weblog is for naturalists to use to report interesting sightings, ask questions, report on field meetings and generally post pictures and any information or questions generally relevant in some way to the wildlife and geology of Essex. You will need to register and be logged-on to post to the forum. Find out more