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The Essex Naturalist
and hawthorn flowers. There are recent records for 23 widely spread localities
across the county.
A. (Melandrena) thoracica (Fabricius)
There are only recent records for four localities in Thurrock at Ferry Fields
(Tilbury), Linford Sand Pit, Mill Wood Pit and Mucking Heath (Orsett Golf
Course).
A. (Cnemidandrena) denticulata (Kir
Recorded by Harwood (1884) at thistle flowers, rare and noted by Nicholson
(1928) from Billericay and the Colchester district on thistles. There are no
recent records.
A. (Cnemidandrena) fuscipes (Kirby)
This species is noted by Nicholson (1928) from Billericay. The bee specialises in
collecting pollen from heather and there are now few remnants of suitable
habitat remaining in the county. It has been searched for and found at Tiptree
Heath, the Backwarden, Danbury, Thundersley Great Common, and a very
small relic area of heather in the Thorndon Park North area. Searches have so
far not revealed its presence at heather areas in Epping Forest.
A. (Cnemidandrena) nigriceps (Kirby) - Notable B
W H Harwood (1884) records a fine series at Stanway on bramble flowers. B S
Harwood (1902b) records a male and female in the Colchester area. Nicholson
(1928) notes the species as not uncommon locally, preferring Compositae
especially Ragwort and gives Billericay and Stanway as localities. There are no
recent records.
[A. (Cnemidandrena) tridentata (Kirby) - RDB1
Falk (1991) gives only five females from four localities in Britain since 1901,
with the last record in 1944. He notes unconfirmed literature records for Essex
(Nicholson 1928, who lists Billericay and the Colchester district as localities,
very local, on Ragwort and Crepis.)]
A. (Trachandrena) haemorrhoa (Fabricius)
= albicans misident.
Harwood records the species (as A. albicans) from the Colchester district.
Nicholson (1928) notes it as generally distributed. Very widely distributed today
with recent records from 28 localities in twenty 10km squares across the county.
A. (Plastandrena) bimaculata (Kirby) - Notable B
Noted by Nicholson (1928) from Billericay and the Colchester district. There are
recent records only from Linford Sand Pit and Mill Wood Pit both in Thurrock.
A. (Plastandrena) pilipes Fabricius - Notable B
= carbonaria L. misident.
Now split into nigrospina Thomson and spectabilis Smith (Baker 1994).