Marsh Moth (Athetis pallustris)
Key Details
| Taxonomic Groups: | Invertebrate > insect - moth > Moth |
| Red List Status: | (Not Relevant) [(not listed)(nr)] |
| D5 Status: | |
| Section 41 Status: | (not listed) |
| Taxa Included Synonym: | (none) |
| UKSI Recommended Name: | Athetis pallustris |
| UKSI Recommended Authority: | (Hübner, [1808]) |
| UKSI Recommended Qualifier: | (none specified) |
| Red List Citation: | (not listed) |
| 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. 2019): EN. Now confined to two sites, numbers at these sites have declined and it has been lost from some parts of the sites. |
| Question 2: | Does recovery/ conservation depend on species-specific actions? |
| Response: | Yes |
| Justification: | Habitat specialist that probably requires bespoke management but precise requirements and threats poorly understood. |
| 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 unlikely that such a rare species would benefit from such actions. |
Species Assessment
| Current step on the Species Recovery Curve (SRC): | 2. Biological status assessment exists |
| Recovery potential/expectation: | Low - Relict or natural rarity |
| National Monitoring Resource: | Structured - insufficient |
| Species Comments: |
Key Actions
Key Action 1
Proposed Action: Undertake detailed ecological research so that pressures are properly understood and recovery management can take place.
Action targets: 4. Autecology and pressures understood
Action type: Scientific research
Duration: 3-5 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 5 sites
High priority sites: Saltfleetby-Theddlethorpe NNR, Gibraltar Point
Comments: Whilst general ecological traits are understood, there is little understanding of its precise needs which would enable recovery management.
Key Action 2
Proposed Action: Improve monitoring at Gibraltar Point to understand population trends there.
Action targets: 3. National Monitoring Plan agreed and implemented
Action type: Targeted monitoring
Duration: >10 years
Scale of Implementation: 1 site
High priority sites: Gibraltar Point
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.