It is difficult to think of any British species that have yet to be found in the valley apart
from Conocephalus discolor, a recent Essex colonist.
Almost all of this area is a Conservation Zone, so receives a degree of local authority
protection and management.
Benfleet/Hadleigh Downs - Eleven species
This area, which for these purposes includes Hadleigh and Leigh Marshes, Two Tree
Island and the Belton Hills at Leigh-on-Sea, lies due west of Southend-on-Sea and
immediately north of Hadleigh Ray and Benfleet Creek; which separates it from Canvey
Island. The habitat is varied, with woodland, downland, scrub, Saltmarsh and seawalls
that support maritime grassland.
Along the seawalls and in the Saltmarsh there are large populations of Chorthippus
albomarginatus, Conocephalus dorsalis and Metrioptera roeselii, whilst grassland close to
these areas supports Chorthippus brunneus and Chorthippus parallelus. Tettigonia
viridissima is a common insect in the south west of England, particularly on cliffs close to
the coast, and it therefore comes as no surprise to find it in some abundance on the only
piece of south facing downland close to the sea in Essex. The scrub and hedgerow
throughout the area supports two bush crickets: Leptophyes punctatissima and
Pholidoptera griseoaptera, whilst Meconema thalassinum, also a bush cricket, can be
found in woodlands close to South Benfleet. Two groundhoppers Tetrix subulata and
Tetrix undulata, which are always difficult to detect and therefore generally
under-recorded, have both been discovered in the vicinity of Kersey Marsh.
Epping Forest - Eleven species
Epping Forest includes Wanstead Flats and Wanstead Park with their many ponds in the
south, Leyton Flats, Walthamstow Forest, Lord's Bushes and the major Forest complex;
comprising Bury Wood, High Beach and Great Monk Wood. To the north is the Lower
Forest close to Epping itself. The Forest comprises six thousand acres of acid heath and
woodland with many ponds.
Not surprisingly, the area supports a large number of species of Orthoptera, at least by
Essex standards. The bush crickets are represented by Leptophyes punctatissima and
Meconema thalassinum; both generally common in scrub, hedgerow and woodland.
Metrioptera roeselii, although not particularly common in the Forest, is found on
Wanstead and Leyton Flats. Conocephalus dorsalis is uncommon, having been recorded
only at Wanstead Flats, but it may well be in other areas close by. One surprising feature
of the Forest is the comparative scarcity of Pholidoptera griseoaptera, the insect is
seemingly absent from large tracts of it.
As in most of Essex, the two grasshoppers Chorthippus brunneus and Chorthippus
parallelus are both widespread. Chorthippus albomarginatus, though scarce in the Forest
has been found on the grasslands of Wanstead Flats. Two grasshoppers which are less
common in Essex are Omocestus viridulus and Myrmeleotettix maculatus but they both
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