Lionychus quadrillum
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: | Lionychus quadrillum |
| UKSI Recommended Authority: | (Duftschmid, 1812) |
| 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: | Yes |
| Justification: | Found in southern England and central Wales. It is very localised on the coast in England and it has declined historically but is perhaps now stable. |
| Question 2: | Does recovery/ conservation depend on species-specific actions? |
| Response: | Yes |
| Justification: | Very localised and therefore vulnerable to extinction to climate-driven changes to its riverine and coastal habitats. An updated status review is required. Given its rarity and specific habitat requirement (exposed riverine sediments and coastal freshwater seepages) it is unlikely that broader habitat management measures will be beneficial. |
| 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): | 2. Biological status assessment exists |
| Recovery potential/expectation: | Medium-high |
| National Monitoring Resource: | Opportunistic - insufficient |
| Species Comments: | Often found near water on unshaded river shingle, sand and gravel, sometimes in quite dry places. This species inhabits Exposed Riverine Sediments (ERS) and equivalent habitats on the coast where freshwater seepages run over sand and shingle at the base of cliffs. Adjacent scrub and rank grassland are considered important for the species in winter and to escape late summer floods. |
Key Actions
Key Action 1
Proposed Action: Undertake a targeted survey of current and historical sites to provide an updated status review.
Action targets: 2. Biological status assessment exists
Action type: Status survey/review
Duration: 2 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 10 sites
High priority sites: The most well established locations in England are Penrose and Gunwallow in west Cornwall, Seaton in east Cornwall, Colne Point in Essex and Dunwich in Suffolk.
Comments: If significant declines are detected then consider need for autecological study and follow up management.
Key Action 2
Proposed Action: Review historical and current management at existing locations and undertake literature reviews to characterise the range of micro-habitats within which it is found, in particular the openness and aspect of suitable sand or shingle substrates in river and coastal habitats including dunes. The reviews should help Identify the management requirements of optimal shingle and sand bank habitats, as well as the pressures which might result in further declines, including hydrological changes resulting in loss of open conditions and habitat loss caused by coastal erosion.
Action targets: 4. Autecology and pressures understood
Action type: Scientific research
Duration: 2 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 10 sites
High priority sites: Penrose and Gunwallow in west Cornwall, Seaton in east Cornwall, Colne Point in Essex and Dunwich in Suffolk.
Comments: Related to action 3
Key Action 3
Proposed Action: Depending on the results of the autecological study and site management reviews restore suitable substrates and conditions of sand and shingle banks on rivers and the coast, including the re-establishment of natural hydrology and river flow dynamics. More extensive, landscape scale management, including the beneficial use of dredgings for beach recharge to increase the extent of beach habitats might also be needed to restore dynamic coastal process which are necessary to maintain open conditions and suitable substrates.
Action targets: 7. Best approach adopted at appropriate scales
Action type: Habitat management
Duration: >10 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 10 sites
High priority sites: Penrose and Gunwallow in west Cornwall, Seaton in east Cornwall, Colne Point in Essex and Dunwich in Suffolk.
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.