Harpalus pumilus
Key Details
| Taxonomic Groups: | Invertebrate > insect - beetle (Coleoptera) > Ground beetle |
| Red List Status: | Near Threatened (Not Relevant) [NT(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: | Harpalus pumilus |
| UKSI Recommended Authority: | Sturm, 1818 |
| UKSI Recommended Qualifier: | (none specified) |
| Red List Citation: | Telfer, 2016 |
| Notes on taxonomy/listing: | (none) |
Criteria
| Question 1: | Does species need conservation or recovery in England? |
| Response: | No |
| Justification: | H. pumilis is almost entirely confined to East Anglia with just a single modern record from Dorset. The data do not suggest any indication of a decline and it is now known from 10 hectads since 1980 (9 hectads in the 2016 status review). The species has a major stronghold in the East Anglian Breckland and there are also records from the north Norfolk coast. H. pumilis is strongly associated with early-successional habitats on dry sandy soils and at a landscape scale, is a species that would benefit from untargeted habitat management to increase early successional habitat mosaics. It was one of the species assessed by the Breckland Ground Beetles project (2015), which provided a variety of practical outputs directed at the conservation of a suite of rare carabids inhabiting this region, including habitat management recommendations and engagement with landowners. Assuming that these initiatives are ongoing, it is not a priority for recovery actions at the current time. |
| Question 2: | Does recovery/ conservation depend on species-specific actions? |
| Response: | No |
| Justification: | H. pumilis is almost entirely confined to East Anglia with just a single modern record from Dorset. The data do not suggest any indication of a decline and it is now known from 10 hectads since 1980 (9 hectads in the 2016 status review). The species has a major stronghold in the East Anglian Breckland and there are also records from the north Norfolk coast. H. pumilis is strongly associated with early-successional habitats on dry sandy soils and at a landscape scale, is a species that would benefit from untargeted habitat management to increase early successional habitat mosaics. It was one of the species assessed by the Breckland Ground Beetles project (2015), which provided a variety of practical outputs directed at the conservation of a suite of rare carabids inhabiting this region, including habitat management recommendations and engagement with landowners. Assuming that these initiatives are ongoing, it is not a priority for recovery actions at the current time. |
| 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: | Yes |
| Justification: | Author states this Breckland species would benefit from untargeted habitat management to increase early successional habitat mosaics. |
Species Assessment
Not relevant as no Key Actions defined.
Key Actions
No Key Actions Defined
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.