specimens of the pretty wolf spider Alopecosa cuneata. This species is
only known from from a few Essex localities, all of considerable interest
for their invertebrate fauna. There is an old record from Colne Point
(TM1012), but otherwise it has only been found at Middlewick Ranges
(TM0023) in Colchester, Bushy Hill (TQ8198) at South Woodham
Ferrers and Shoebury Old Ranges (TQ9284, TQ9384) near Southend.
The spider is nationally local, but may be numerous at a site and may
be found in Kent for example in chalk grassland habitats. All the Essex
sites are old grassland sites and I suspect that it may be a good
indicator of these.
It was a good year for records of the nationally notable orb-web spider
Araniella inconspicua. A meeting to Rowney Wood (TL5633) produced
two males one taken by Ken Hill probably in the wood itself and
another taken by myself from the edge of a Rape crop near the wood.
I also found males of the spider at Yardley Hill (TQ3896) in Epping
Forest, Menagerie Plantation (TQ6290) at Thorndon Park South and at
Mucking Heath (TQ6580). At this last site I took two males together in
one casual sweep of the lower branches of a small oak tree. The
species is very similar in appearance to the widespread species
Araniella cucurbitina and A. opistographa and I very nearly did not
bother to collect these two specimens. It just shows how important it
is with spiders (and many other invertebrates) not to rely on field
determinations without the confirmation of microscopical examination
and voucher specimens.
A single specimen of another orb-web spider Araneus marmoreus was
found by Dr Chris Spilling during a visit to Howe Wood (TL5434), a
small ancient wood near Rowney Wood. This spider was recorded by
Hull in a number of localities in the Colchester area, but the only
modern record has been for another single specimen taken at High
Wood near Langley in 1991. Although of very local distribution the
species can be abundant in woods elsewhere in the country and it is a
mystery why it should be so rare in modern Essex.
Several Field Club members responded to my plea to look out for the
small green spider Nigma walckenaeri and we now have records of the
species from near Harlow, a new part of the county for the spider
together with a whole number of new locations within the previously
recorded range. The spider is thought to be restricted to the Thames
Valley region and is assumed to have been introduced to Britain perhaps
from Kew Gardens. The species has turned out to be widespread and
often very common in gardens and parks in London and Essex. The
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