Tall Sea Pen (Funiculina quadrangularis)
Key Details
| Taxonomic Groups: | Invertebrate > coelenterate (=cnidarian) > Cnidarian |
| Red List Status: | (Not Relevant) [(not listed)(nr)] |
| D5 Status: | |
| Section 41 Status: | (not listed) |
| Taxa Included Synonym: | (none) |
| UKSI Recommended Name: | Funiculina quadrangularis |
| UKSI Recommended Authority: | (Pallas, 1766) |
| UKSI Recommended Qualifier: | (none specified) |
| Red List Citation: | (not listed) |
| Notes on taxonomy/listing: | (none) |
Criteria
| Question 1: | Does species need conservation or recovery in England? |
| Response: | Yes |
| Justification: | There have been no long-term studies of British sea pen populations and very little information on the life cycles and population dynamics. |
| Question 2: | Does recovery/ conservation depend on species-specific actions? |
| Response: | Yes |
| Justification: | Previously considered a very local species in cracks and crevices, either coastal or in riverine mud, with most records from coastal locations in the southeast. Evidence of breeding from an inland industrial site in north London in 2001 where ground was wet in winter and drying with spring. Increasing occurrence of this species at light, especially on very hot nights, suggest that it may be more widespread than previously thought and is difficult to detect apart from when adults are dispersing, and/or that this species is increasing. Recent new county records for Gloucestershire and Lincolnshire. Likely to be increasing in range as a result of climate change. |
| Question 3: | At a landscape scale, would the species benefit from untargeted habitat management to increase habitat mosaics, structural diversity, or particular successional stages? |
| Response: | No |
| Justification: | Not relevant to marine species |
Species Assessment
| Current step on the Species Recovery Curve (SRC): | 2. Biological status assessment exists |
| Recovery potential/expectation: | Medium-high |
| National Monitoring Resource: | Opportunistic - insufficient |
| Species Comments: | Larval stage may result in a relatively long period of time to disperse in the water column with high gene flow observed between colonies of Funiculina quadrangularis in two Scottish sea lochs. In the Adriatic tall sea pens increased in density where fisheries were closed, even after a short period |
Key Actions
Key Action 1
Proposed Action: Assessment of status backed by monitoring and survey.
Action targets: 2. Biological status assessment exists
Action type: Status survey/review
Duration: 6-10 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 20 sites
High priority sites: Regional assessment in Scotland and across suitable habitats.
Comments: Vessel time, trained staff and specialist equipment incurs high costs, a monitoring strategy and assessment that builds on disparate data sources such as fishery surveys and marine protected area monitoring is recommended.
Key Action 2
Proposed Action: Based on outcome of Action 1, consider developing a monitoring plan that focusses on protected sites and existing populations, building on opportunistic survey to understand more about population structure and dynamics. As a species that occurs in deeper waters this species is not readily tractable for laboratory studies. In-situ monitoring therefore recommended to understand population status and trends.
Action targets: 3. National Monitoring Plan agreed and implemented
Action type: Targeted monitoring
Duration: 6-10 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 10 sites
High priority sites: Existing sites and any adjacent sites that are shown to be suitable to support populations.
Comments:
Acknowledgment:
Data used on this website are adapted from Threatened species recovery actions 2025 baseline (JP065): Technical report and spreadsheet user guide (Natural England, 2025). Available here.