Leptophyes punctatissima: Speckled bush cricket
A medium-sized green insect with very small dark spots, this species is a rather "quiet"
individual, never given to rapid movement. It is always easier to locate as a nymph where
it tends to sit in the open on low, scrubby vegetation, and a sweep net used in May will
usually reveal many nymphs. As the insect matures it becomes far more difficult to
locate as well as becoming more scarce, for it tends to climb higher in the vegetation
and conceal itself among a variety of shrubs and herbs. Not strictly a woodland insect, it
fares rather better where mature trees are close at hand and can often be beaten from
shrubs, particularly Hazel. Stridulation is barely audible to most people and in any event,
can only be heard from a distance of a few feet.
The survey reveals that L. punctatissima is uncommon in coastal areas. It occurs
sporadically but in small numbers, and over large areas close to the sea, it appears to be
absent. This could be due to the sparsely wooded nature along almost all of the coast,
which is low lying land with a history of grazing, after reclamation. Its distribution
throughout Essex is widespread, closely matching that of Meconema thalassinum.
Further searches in the central region of the County would probably reveal many
additional records for both species.
Acheta domesticus: House cricket
Although this insect has been in Britain for many centuries, it is the only breeding alien
species to have been found in Essex during this survey. It is a medium-sized insect with
generally greyish colouration and during long, hot sunny spells, stridulation can be heard
very clearly from up to a hundred metres away.
It is most commonly found in old Victorian heated dwellings such as hospitals, hotels and
bakeries, but as these types of habitation have either been demolished or completely
renovated over the last few decades, so the population of A. domesticus has declined.
However, it is also found in the open, where it usually frequents refuse tips where heat
from fermentation provides ideal conditions.
This species could be present more or less anywhere in the County, but historical
records show it once to have been most common in the south west of Essex where the
greatest density of old dwellings traditionally existed. A large population of this insect
was found on a refuse tip at the old Marks Tey brickpits near Colchester in 1981. Many
hundreds were seen scurrying for cover as refuse was being turned over.
During this survey, only eight 1km records have been found including: a sighting on a
sewage farm at Wanstead; another from Hornchurch Marshes, whilst other records have
come from Fingringhoe Wick Nature Reserve in the north east of the County and
Rainham, East Tilbury, Rochford and Westcliff-on-Sea in the south. A further probable
record occurred in a bakery at Weeley near Clacton-on-Sea, where the stridulation was
described, and heard from the basement area of the building. The record was never
Page 27