Teretrius fabricii
Key Details
| Taxonomic Groups: | Invertebrate > insect - beetle (Coleoptera) > Clown or False-clown beetle |
| Red List Status: | Regionally Extinct (GB scale) (Not Relevant) [RE(nr)] |
| D5 Status: | Included in the baseline Red List Index for England (Wilkins, Wilson & Brown, 2022) |
| Section 41 Status: | (not listed) |
| Taxa Included Synonym: | (none) |
| UKSI Recommended Name: | Teretrius fabricii |
| UKSI Recommended Authority: | Mazur, 1972 |
| UKSI Recommended Qualifier: | (none specified) |
| Red List Citation: | Lane, 2017 |
| Notes on taxonomy/listing: | (none) |
Criteria
| Question 1: | Does species need conservation or recovery in England? |
| Response: | Yes |
| Justification: | Regionally Extinct. Not recorded in Britain since 1936 (Walderslade, East Kent TQ76). Formerly known also from East Norfolk, Glamorganshire, North Somerset, Berkshire, Middlesex and East Suffolk, all before 1900. Its stronghold in the region however, appeared to be in Surrey where it was recorded from five hectads, mostly recently in 1907. The Surrey localities are: Ashtead and Ashstead Common (1905-1907, TQ15), Oxshott Heath (1907, TQ16), Putney (1902-1907, TQ27), Shirley (1874, TQ36) and from Biggin Hill Upper Norwood, Camberwell, Forest Hill and Peckham (pre-1890, TQ37). Some of these locations might be duplicated under different names. |
| Question 2: | Does recovery/ conservation depend on species-specific actions? |
| Response: | Yes |
| Justification: | Confined to England, but unrecorded before 1996 and presumably a recent arrival. Known from 5 hectads in East Kent, West Kent and East Sussex. It is unclear whether the species is genuinely native. On this basis it is not a suitable candidate for any recovery action. |
| 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: | This species would not benefit from untargeted management |
Species Assessment
| Current step on the Species Recovery Curve (SRC): | 4. Autecology and pressures understood |
| Recovery potential/expectation: | Low - Combination or other (detail in comments) |
| National Monitoring Resource: | Opportunistic - sufficient |
| Species Comments: | The only data relating to British specimens cites the source as 'in oak fences in company with Lyctus brunneus', 'on an old fence', 'with Lyctus canaliculatus, no L. brunneus to be found' and 'from fresh oak palings in company with Tillus unifasciatus and Lyctus brunneus'. The species preys on Bostrichid larvae. The twentieth century decline in active exploitation of woodlands for wood products may have affected this species. |
Key Actions
Key Action 1
Proposed Action: Complete desk study to determine whether a reintroduction is feasible under current Natural England codes and guidance for England
Action targets: 4. Autecology and pressures understood
Action type: Scientific research
Duration: 2 years
Scale of Implementation: Not applicable
High priority sites: Not applicable
Comments: Only to be undertaken if this passes the reintroduction feasibility screening assessment
Key Action 2
Proposed Action: Autecological research to better characterise habitat requirements and inform management
Action targets: 4. Autecology and pressures understood
Action type: Scientific research
Duration: 3-5 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 5 sites
High priority sites: Unknown
Comments: As this species is extinct in Britain, ecological studies would have to be based on fieldwork in Europe. This should document the size, condition, and situation of suitable dead wood.
Key Action 3
Proposed Action: Reintroduction if this is judged to be feasible based on the results of Actions 1 and 2.
Action targets: 6. Recovery solutions trialled
Action type: (Re-)introduction
Duration: >10 years
Scale of Implementation: 1 site
High priority sites: Unknown
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.