Heath Fritillary (Melitaea athalia)
Key Details
| Taxonomic Groups: | Invertebrate > insect - butterfly > Butterfly |
| 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: | Melitaea athalia |
| UKSI Recommended Authority: | (Rottemburg, 1775) |
| UKSI Recommended Qualifier: | (none specified) |
| Red List Citation: | Fox & Dennis, 2021 |
| Notes on taxonomy/listing: | (none) |
Criteria
| Question 1: | Does species need conservation or recovery in England? |
| Response: | Yes |
| Justification: | GB Red List (Fox et al. 2022): EN. Statistically significant 90% decline in abundance since 1981 and a 42% short-term (10 year 2010-2019) decline; 63% long-term decline in distribution since 1995 and a 31% short-term decline (Fox et al. 2023) |
| Question 2: | Does recovery/ conservation depend on species-specific actions? |
| Response: | Yes |
| Justification: | Restricted species occurring in sunny situations where the vegetation is sparse and the microclimate at ground level is particularly warm, such as in recent coppice or on moorland edges. Depending on habitat the caterpillars feeds on a range of foodplants including Cow-wheat (Melampyrum pratense) and Ribwort Plantain (Plantago lanceolata). A well-studied species and targeted management to maintain early-successional habitat is required. In total occupies <1km of habitat. |
| 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: | Highly restricted species requiring targeted management. |
Species Assessment
| Current step on the Species Recovery Curve (SRC): | 6. Recovery solutions trialled |
| Recovery potential/expectation: | Medium-high |
| National Monitoring Resource: | Structured - sufficient |
| Species Comments: | Species has always been restricted but with appropriate, good practice management colonies can be abundant. Some indication that climate change is increasing threat in SE, different approaches to management away from traditional techniques and there is a legacy of extinction debt (particularly Essex populations) |
Key Actions
Key Action 1
Proposed Action: Carry out management trial to explore different techniques for scrub management and maintaining good quality habitat without using traditional winter burning (due to climate change/carbon emission concerns) and disseminate results and update management recommendations
Action targets: 6. Recovery solutions trialled
Action type: Scientific research
Duration: 3-5 years
Scale of Implementation: 1 site
High priority sites:
Comments: Work in partnership with NT on Exmoor
Key Action 2
Proposed Action: Research the causes of decline where monitoring data is alerting us to concerns; such as where significant management changes are happening in some landscapes away from traditional, best practice woodland management.
Action targets: 5. Remedial action identified
Action type: Scientific research
Duration: >10 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 5 sites
High priority sites: Blean, Kent
Comments: With the move away from traditional coppice management to rewilding/grazing management it's vital that the impact of this is assessed and monitored
Key Action 3
Proposed Action: Increase advice and support to landowners, advisors, land managers on appropriate management practices (as results of experimental trials become available) and target habitat restoration and creation at the landscape-scale in both extant and extinct networks with potential habitat.
Action targets: 7. Best approach adopted at appropriate scales
Action type: Advice & Support
Duration: >10 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 50 sites
High priority sites: Exmoor and Tamar Valley
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.