Ophonus sabulicola
Key Details
| Taxonomic Groups: | Invertebrate > insect - beetle (Coleoptera) > Ground beetle |
| Red List Status: | Endangered (Not Relevant) [EN(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: | Ophonus sabulicola |
| UKSI Recommended Authority: | (Panzer, 1796) |
| 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: | Restricted to southern England this species is only known from two localities in the post-1980 period. It has experienced a substantial historical decline and this appears to have continued into the modern period in which nearly all records since 1983 have come from a single locality. |
| Question 2: | Does recovery/ conservation depend on species-specific actions? |
| Response: | Yes |
| Justification: | Extremely localised and declining and thus vulnerable to extinction, especially as a result of climate change effects on the coast. Given that it is now restricted to only two locations at best with a likely ongoing decline then targeted management and site protection are urgently required. |
| 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): | 7. Best approach adopted at appropriate scales |
| Recovery potential/expectation: | Low - Extinction debt |
| National Monitoring Resource: | Opportunistic - insufficient |
| Species Comments: | Found on dry chalky or sandy soils; the two most recently occupied sites are on or near the coast. |
Key Actions
Key Action 1
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, particularly relating to substrate conditions and vegetation cover. The reviews should help Identify the nature and quality of suitable habitats and their management requirements, as well as the pressures which might result in further declines such as dense vegetation growth due to eutrophication.
Action targets: 4. Autecology and pressures understood
Action type: Scientific research
Duration: 2 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 5 sites
High priority sites: Hythe Roughs in southeast Kent and Dunwich Heath in Suffolk.
Comments: Related to action 2.
Key Action 2
Proposed Action: Depending on the results of the autecological study and site management reviews restore suitable substrates and vegetation conditions perhaps through changes to grazing, vegetation clearance and/or mechanical ground disturbance to create bare scrapes.
Action targets: 7. Best approach adopted at appropriate scales
Action type: Habitat management
Duration: >10 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 5 sites
High priority sites: Hythe Roughs in southeast Kent and Dunwich Heath in Suffolk.
Comments: If habitat management is successful then consider feasibility of action 3.
Key Action 3
Proposed Action: Assess potential for re-introduction to historical sites on the south coast, such as Kimmeridge Bay and Gadcliffe, in Dorset following the introduction of suitable management. Hythe Roughs and/or Dunwich heath could provide donor populations if they still support the species. No information could be found on the feasibility of re-introducing this species nor the techniques necessary for success.
Action targets: 6. Recovery solutions trialled
Action type: (Re-)introduction
Duration: 3-5 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 5 sites
High priority sites: Hythe Roughs, Dunwich Heath as potential donor sites. Location on the south coast are potentially suitable for re-introductions, including Kimmeridge Bay and Gadcliffe.
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.