This report provides the results of a terrestrial invertebrate survey of the DHL-owned East Tilbury landfill site to inform Natural England’s proposal to enlarge the Mucking Flats and Marshes Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), notified (in part) for its invertebrate interest. This survey compartment comprises a large unit of land and is located a short distance west of Coalhouse Fort.
The survey targeted Species Assemblage Types (SATs) F111 ‘bare sand and chalk’ and F112 ‘open short sward’. Data was collected using pitfall trapping, sweep netting and suction sampling.
A total of 138 species of invertebrates were recorded of which 16 species have a national status. The SAT that is most prominent at this compartment is the F002 ‘rich flower resource’ with a total of 12 species of fidelity recorded (where the threshold for favourable condition is 15). Of the targeted SATs, F111 had 5 species recorded (where the threshold for favourable condition is 19) and F112 had 8 species recorded (where the threshold for favourable condition is 13).
The report found that the survey compartment has a low to moderate percentage of scarce species. However, this land has potential to become a more valuable stepping stone between Tilbury and Mucking and the species within the F111, F112 and other SATs would increase with different management mechanisms in place.