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The Speckled Wood Butterfly
(Pararge aegeria L.) in Essex
BY THE EDITOR
Recent records show that the Speckled Wood is extending its range east-
wards in Kent and in Hertfordshire, so that when a specimen turned up
during the Club's Fungus Foray, it gave rise to the hope that a
re-colonisation of Essex woods by this butterfly might soon take place. It
therefore seems opportune to review the status of the species in Essex.
Mr. Paul Smart has kindly looked up published records for us, and some
Essex entomologists have been good enough to provide us with notes on
their experience of the species in the county. Grateful thanks are offered
to these entomologists for their help.
Messrs. J. M. Chalmers-Hunt and D. F. Owen (1952) stated that: "This
has always been less common in the eastern counties than elsewhere in
the south and Midlands, and during the latter half of the 19th century and
the early part of the 20th century it disappeared from many of its former
haunts, particularly those in the eastern counties, but has now reappeared
in some of them . . . There is evidence of this extension as early as 1926, but
until about 10 years ago it was not generally apparent".
South (1906) wrote: "It is generally distributed throughout England and
Wales, but more plentiful in southern and western counties than in the
eastern and northern".
Stokoe (1944) wrote: "Of late years, for some reason at present unknown,
this butterfly has unfortunately died out in many localities in which it was
formerly common. It has been noted that it has quite disappeared from
one wooded locality in Essex in which it used to be fairly abundant".
Dr. E. B. Ford (1945) gives a distribution map which gives only one
Essex locality, this being near Maldon.
With reference to Hertfordshire, Mr. S. B. Hodgson (1937) reported
that it did not then occur in the vicinity of Broxbourne although the
species was locally common in the Chilterns of West Herts, but "the
lack of information suggests that it is probably still either entirely absent
or extremely local and scarce in most parts of Hertfordshire".
Mr. Derek Ashwell of Bishops Stortford writes—"The only record for
this area is one worn male, taken in Bishops Stortford, Herts on 2nd
August, 1945 by C. D. Beales. I seem to remember having heard that one
was taken in Little or Much Hadham, Herts, by S. F. Perkins about 1939,
but cannot confirm this. My friend Blaxhill of Colchester says that only
a single specimen has been taken in that area of Essex."
Mr. H. C. Huggins, of Westcliff-on-Sea (1953), says in a letter: "I have
never seen it on any of my expeditions or met anyone who has. No doubt
it will eventually establish itself as it has in Kent, where it is now common.
I lived in Kent the first 40 years of my life, in all parts as I moved about
a good deal, and never saw one, but I have seen several in chance visits
to old haunts in the past three years. Dr. Stovin, in a pamphlet on our
local butterflies, says Pickett caught three here in 1933. Pickett never
said anything about these to me and they were not in his collection when
he died* four years later. I think the statement to be due to a misunder-
standing and should be disregarded."