Yellow Mayfly (Potamanthus luteus)
Key Details
| Taxonomic Groups: | Invertebrate > insect - mayfly (Ephemeroptera) > Mayfly |
| 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: | Potamanthus luteus |
| UKSI Recommended Authority: | (Linnaeus, 1767) |
| UKSI Recommended Qualifier: | (none specified) |
| Red List Citation: | Macadam, 2016 |
| Notes on taxonomy/listing: | (none) |
Criteria
| Question 1: | Does species need conservation or recovery in England? |
| Response: | Yes |
| Justification: | This species is known from two river systems in England - the River Wye (Herefordshire) and the River Severn. In the River Wye the population is in decline, probably due to water pollution issues and habitat disturbance. The population in the River Severn is increased in range and abundance. |
| Question 2: | Does recovery/ conservation depend on species-specific actions? |
| Response: | No |
| Justification: | The main threat to the population in the Wye is water pollution. |
| 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: | This species would benefit from actions to improve water quality and habitat quality in the River Wye. In addition, action to tackle light pollution is required as this species is attracted away from the river by lights. |
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.