Challan Hall Allotment is an RSPB reserve closed to the public. It’s sandwiched between Gaitbarrows NNR and the Silverdale Moss wetland. There has been little modern invertebrate recording besides Lepidoptera. There is a good variety of habitats including fen, meadow, scrub and woodland with veteran trees, and an old quarry.

Recorders: Phil Brighton, Keith Fowler, Steve Garland, Gary Hedges, Steve Palmer, Rob Zloch

Notable records:

Coleoptera (Beetles)

Orchestes signifer (Curculionidae), G. Hedges.

• New to VC60. Widespread in Southern half of Britain, becoming scarcer further North.
• Larvae mine Oak leaves.

Glocianus punctiger (Curculionidae), G. Hedges 
• New to VC60.
• Associated with Dandelions Taraxacum.

Datonychus melanostictus (Curculionidae), G. Hedges.
• New to VC60 and at the northern extent of range in the UK. Widespread in Southern Britain.
• On Gypsywort Lycopus europaeus and mints Mentha.

Tanysphyrus lemnae Duckweed Weevil (Erirhinidae), G. Hedges.
• New to VC60. Frequent in Cheshire but few Lancashire records.
• Associated with aquatic and subaquatic plants including duckweeds Lemna and the liverwort Ricciocarpos natans.

Diptera (True Flies)

Pegomya incisiva (Anthomyiidae), P. Brighton.
• 2nd English record and new to the region.
• Associated with fungi.

Zaphne ambigua (Anthomyiidae), P, Brighton.
• New to VC60. Widely recorded, particularly in western Wales.
• 359 records on NBN Atlas, which is a large number for this under-recorded family of flies.
• 7 other British representatives in the genus but the only larval food data is for Z. inuncta: larvae found in pellets of hair ejected from owls.

Leucophenga maculata (Drosophilidae), P. Brighton. 
• New to VC60. NBN Atlas does not show any NW England records.
• Associated with fungi.

Molophilus lackschewitzianus (Limoniidae), P. Brighton.
• New to VC60. A small orange cranefly associated with limestone sites and known from VC69. Just 58 records currently on NBN Atlas.

Hemiptera (True Bugs)

Acalypta carinata (Tingidae), G. Hedges.
• Two previous records for the region (1999 & 2011), both from nearby sites in Morecambe Bay.
• Local throughout Britain, in moss on rotting logs.

Metatropis rufescens (Berytidae), G. Hedges.
• New to VC60 and appears to be at the Northern extent of UK range.
• Feeds on the leaves of enchanter’s nightshade Circaea lutetiana.

Raphidioptera (Snakeflies)

Xanthostigma xanthostigma (Raphidiidae), P. Brighton.
• Although this species is known from Cheshire, there are no Lancashire records on NBN Atlas or iRecord so this maybe a new VC / County record.
• Snakeflies are thought to spend most of their time in tree tops, which is thought to be why they are so sparingly encountered.

Download Challan Hall Allotment Species List & Raw Data [Excel spreadsheet] last updated 20/03/2023

Species list: