Hockley Woods

Also within

Essex County

Condition (Natural England)

Habitats

Ancient woodland, Bracken scrub, Coppiced woodland, Fast flowing river and stream

Geology & landscape

Landscape processes: Glacial

Birds & fish recorded

Birds

Description

Area,91.3 hectares 225.6 ac Description Hockley Woods are a contiguous group of ancient coppice woods incorporating great Bull wood, great Hawkwell Wood, Beeches Wood and Parson's Snipe. They lie on the crest and slopes of a ridge of pre glacial gravels and clay north west of Southend on Sea. They form one of the most extensive areas of ancient woodland in South Essex, the dominant stand types comprising the sweet chestnut variants of pedunculate oak hornbeam birch hazel variant and acid sessile oak hornbeam. The population of sessile oak Quercus petraea is probably the largest in eastern England. The woodland is mainly oak standards, over hornbeam Carpinus betulus or sweet chestnut Castanea sativa coppice. A large part of the central area is a mixture of these two types. Pure hornbeam is found in parts. Sessile oak is the predominant oak and occurs on the higher gravel ridges. Pedunculate oak Quercus robur is found on the clays and loams of the valleys and hybrids are common where the two species merge. Birch Betula spp. is locally dominant both as coppice and standards. Wild service tree Sorbus torminalis grows throughout the woods and over forty clones have been identified. Wild cherry Prunus avium is especially abundant in Parson's Snipe. The ground flora is dominated by bramble Rubus fruticosus agg. and creeping soft grass Holcus mollis with substantial areas of bracken Pteridium aquilinum. Common cow wheat Melampyrum pratense, slender St. John's wort Hypericum pulchrum, wood melick Melica uniflora and yellow archangel Lamiastrum galeobdolon are locally plentiful. Butcher's broom Ruscus aculeatus is found on the boundary banks. Heath dog violet Viola cania, great wood rush Luzula sylvatica and narrow leaved everlasting pea Lathyrus sylvestris, all local plants in the county, occur in the more open areas. Three species of orchid have been recorded, including bird's nest orchid Neottia nidus-avis and, by a stream and marshy area, broad leaved helleborine Epipactis helleborine. Other plants found in this habitat include woodruff Galium odoratum, brooklime Veronica beccabunga, wild angelica Angelica sylvestris and square stalked St. John's wort Hypericum tetrapterum. Additional interest is provided by a seasonally wet pond with water voilet Hottonia palustris, an uncommon and decreasing plant in Essex. The woods are also of significant historical interest, " The Anglo Saxon perimeter has been nibbled away by many small encroachments, but the internal boundary banks are probably the most extensive fully described for any wood in England". O. Rackham, 1986, 'The Woods of South East Essex '.

Species mentioned

Insects to look out for

These moths, butterflies and beetles are known to feed on plants recorded at this site, and carry a notable UK conservation status — but a host-plant being present doesn't mean the insect has actually been recorded here. Treat this as "worth watching for," not a confirmed sighting.

Host-plant data: Cook et al. (2025), Traits data for the butterflies and macro-moths of Great Britain and Ireland, 2024, UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology / Butterfly Conservation; and Padovani et al. (2020), Database of Insects and their Food Plants (DBIF), UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (both Open Government Licence). Contains data supplied by UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology.

Plant communities