Dark-winged Soldier (Oxycera analis)
Key Details
| Taxonomic Groups: | Invertebrate > insect - true fly (Diptera) > Soldier fly or ally |
| Red List Status: | Vulnerable (Not Relevant) [VU(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: | Oxycera analis |
| UKSI Recommended Authority: | Wiedemann in Meigen, 1822 |
| UKSI Recommended Qualifier: | (none specified) |
| Red List Citation: | Drake, 2017 |
| Notes on taxonomy/listing: | (none) |
Criteria
| Question 1: | Does species need conservation or recovery in England? |
| Response: | Yes |
| Justification: | The distribution of Oxycera analis appears to have declined markedly in the past 20 years. Prior to this there were widespread records in the Southern parts of England. Since 2011 there are only 9 records all from Berkshire the latest being from 2016. A record from 2019 is of two larvae kick sampled from the river Avon in Wiltshire. |
| Question 2: | Does recovery/ conservation depend on species-specific actions? |
| Response: | Yes |
| Justification: | Rarely recorded with no records from the recent known sites since 2016, surveying of old sites and those of similar habitat type in the southern part of England would be the basis for more specific actions if the populations have persisted. |
| 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: | Connectivity between woodland and fen sites and maintenance of fens and fen carr may benefits. |
Species Assessment
| Current step on the Species Recovery Curve (SRC): | 2. Biological status assessment exists |
| Recovery potential/expectation: | Low - Life history factor/s |
| National Monitoring Resource: | Opportunistic - insufficient |
| Species Comments: | If there are extant populations they would be at risk from abstraction from aquifers drying up springs and seepages. Deteriorating water quality may also be an issue i.e nutrient enrichment of small streams. |
Key Actions
Key Action 1
Proposed Action: Tailored surveys of potential habitat in and around known localities to determine the population and species distribution, thus identifying areas where O. analis is present.
Action targets: 3. National Monitoring Plan agreed and implemented
Action type: Targeted monitoring
Duration: 2 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 5 sites
High priority sites: Berkshire, BBOWT Dry Sandford Pit (SU466994), BBOWT Lashford Lane Fen (SP46730119) Cambridgeshire, Wimple Hall (TL346514)
Comments: A tailored survey within the known flight period to encompass the areas where previous sightings have been made along with any adjacent/linked areas with similar habitats to see if populations are still present or if they have spread. Older records from other sites exist prior to 1996.
Key Action 2
Proposed Action: Removal of reed and sedge either manually or through grazing (site dependant) should be beneficial. The aquatic larvae have been collected from silt at the margins of small calcareous streams, where they live in the very shallow water film.
Action targets: 4. Autecology and pressures understood
Action type: Habitat management
Duration: >10 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 5 sites
High priority sites: Berkshire, BBOWT Dry Sandford Pit (SU466994), BBOWT Lashford Lane Fen (SP46730119) Cambridgeshire, Wimple Hall (TL346514)
Comments: Necessary to promote reproduction and to ensure that suitable habitat for larvae is protected and if possible expanded. At Dry Sandford Pit on site guidance by specialist botanist to supervise Reed/Sedge clearance due to presence of protected Orchids within some areas of possible sites. Similar positive effects for Stratiomys chamaeleon, below.
Key Action 3
Proposed Action: Liaising with local landowners and farmers in relation to water abstraction, slurry, run-off and potential of ingress by avermectins and other harmful chemicals all of which may lead to loss of populations.
Action targets: 4. Autecology and pressures understood
Action type: Pressure mitigation
Duration: >10 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 5 sites
High priority sites: Berkshire, BBOWT Dry Sandford Pit (SU466994), BBOWT Lashford Lane Fen (SP46730119) Cambridgeshire, Wimple Hall (TL346514)
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.