The Essex Naturalist
89
Distribution
Donisthorpe (1927) gives Hockley as the only locality in Essex and this is shown
in Barrett (1979). The ant had not been recorded again in the county until
David Atkins found two workers crawling on a Wood ant nest on 25th Sept
1996 at Well Wood, Hanningfield (TQ836970) a Wildlife Trust Reserve (Payne
pers. comm.). It is possible the ant occurs in other woods in south-east Essex
with abundant Wood ant nests.
Habitat and Ecology
This ant occurs only in the nests of Formica rufa and allied mound building
species. Individual nests contain only a few individuals, up to about 100, but
often several nests are present within one mound of the host. Individuals
normally remain concealed within the nests but may wander on the mound
surface on warm dull days (Collingwood 1979).
Threats
The host Wood ant appears to be declining nationally, although strong colonies
are still present in quite a number of the woods in south-east Essex. Lack of
woodland management and a reduction in the level of coppicing would seem to
be the major threat to both the host and its inquiline associate.
Leptothorax acervorum (F.)
National status Local County status Essex Scarce
Frequency Ratio 1.2 Tetrad Percentage 1.4%
Recorded 1km sq. percentage 3.3%
Leptothorax acervorum (F.)