Oulema erichsoni

Key Details

Taxonomic Groups: Invertebrate > insect - beetle (Coleoptera) > Leaf beetle or ally
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: Oulema erichsonii
UKSI Recommended Authority: (Suffrian, 1841)
UKSI Recommended Qualifier: (none specified)
Red List Citation: Hubble, 2014
Notes on taxonomy/listing: (none)

Criteria

Question 1: Does species need conservation or recovery in England?
Response: Yes
Justification: Known historically from Kent, Devon and Somerset, but now known only from the latter
Question 2: Does recovery/ conservation depend on species-specific actions?
Response: Yes
Justification: Lack of evidence
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: Creation of wetland mosaics might benefit this species, but seems to have very specific requirements, i.e. poorly vegetated peat cuttings and trenches in peaty substrates.

Species Assessment

Current step on the Species Recovery Curve (SRC): 2. Biological status assessment exists
Recovery potential/expectation: Unknown
National Monitoring Resource: Opportunistic - insufficient
Species Comments: Small and easily overlooked. Similar to some other species in genus

Key Actions

Key Action 1

Proposed Action: Targeted survey of sites with potentially suitable habitat

Action targets: 3. National Monitoring Plan agreed and implemented

Action type: Status survey/review

Duration: 2 years

Scale of Implementation: ≤ 20 sites

High priority sites: Sites with potentially suitable habitat

Comments: Focus on those areas with potentially suitable habitat that are within the bounds of the known historical range. Perhaps make use of AI algorithms to define areas of potential occupation, but only when microhabitat preferences have been defined.

Key Action 2

Proposed Action: Define autecology of larvae and adults at known sites and using captive populations.

Action targets: 4. Autecology and pressures understood

Action type: Scientific research

Duration: 3-5 years

Scale of Implementation: ≤ 5 sites

High priority sites:

Comments: Important questions to try and answer with targeted research include: What do the larvae and adults need? What are the dispersal abilities of the adults? How will existing populations be impacted by climate change?

Key Action 3

Proposed Action: Population genetics of known populations

Action targets: 4. Autecology and pressures understood

Action type: Scientific research

Duration: 3-5 years

Scale of Implementation: ≤ 5 sites

High priority sites:

Comments: This should be a follow-up to the autecology work. Important, as it will provide information on population size, population divergence, population viability as well as informing potential translocation strategies

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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.