General comments:
Widespread but very local resident.

Numerically, the Blackneck is not a common species here. Past records indicate that is was always rather scarce. It was first noted here in 1881, when Benjamin Brown caught a single example at Burleigh Heath, near Knebworth (Foster, 1916). Foster himself found it at a new locality 'quite near Hitchin' where he collected four in 1914 and three in 1915. It was also recorded at Norton Common in 1921 (Foster, 1937). It is absent from the 1950 list for the Bishops Stortford district (Allan, 1950) and was first recorded in this area in 1956, then again in 1958 (Fielding et al, 1985). During 1981 it was caught on several occasions at Sawbridgeworth Marsh (Charles Watson, Geoffrey Sell and others); I caught it on my first trip there in 1987 and it is still there in 2006. The record for Whetstone, on 18th July 1963 (P. Ward), remarked upon in de Worms (1964) as being noteworthy, is actually in Middlesex, though it nevertheless serves to demonstrate that the species was still scarce at that date whilst singles at light in Totteridge, in July 1974 (Ian Lorimer) and at Bushey, on 10th July 1975 (Barry Goater) were also worthy of comment at the time. David Wilson caught a number in his garden at Green Tye in 1976, the hot summer, and that may have been the start of its increase in population - and perhaps the number of occupied sites. At the end of 2022 it is expected in most areas, but only in low number and always restricted by habitat availability.

Recorded in 29 (71%) of 41 10k Squares. First Recorded in 1940. Last Recorded in 2024. Additional Stats

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