Lynx Spider (Oxyopes heterophthalmus)
Key Details
| Taxonomic Groups: | Invertebrate > spider (Araneae) > Spider |
| 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: | Oxyopes heterophthalmus |
| UKSI Recommended Authority: | Latreille, 1804 |
| UKSI Recommended Qualifier: | (none specified) |
| Red List Citation: | Harvey et al., 2017 |
| Notes on taxonomy/listing: | (none) |
Criteria
| Question 1: | Does species need conservation or recovery in England? |
| Response: | Yes |
| Justification: | VU, criteria: D2. Never recorded beyond the New Forest, from which it appears to be long lost, and the Surrey heaths. |
| Question 2: | Does recovery/ conservation depend on species-specific actions? |
| Response: | Yes |
| Justification: | Absent from apparently suitable habitat including former locations that appear to remain suitably managed |
| 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: | This species would not benefit from untargeted management |
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: | Found in the tops of mature heather on dry heathland, making it particularly vulnerable to fire. In Surrey, possibly more abundant on N Tertiary heaths than the Lower Greensand heaths to the south. |
Key Actions
Key Action 1
Proposed Action: Targeted re-survey of all former and nearby sites, using standardised methodology to assess current status (and establish baseline for national monitoring programme)
Action targets: 2. Biological status assessment exists
Action type: Status survey/review
Duration: 2 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 10 sites
High priority sites: All Surrey heaths; Lyndhurst area, New Forest
Comments: Surveyors should be aware that this species can be identified as juveniles., which are distinct from the adults
Key Action 2
Proposed Action: Autecological research to better characterise habitat requirements and inform management
Action targets: 4. Autecology and pressures understood
Action type: Scientific research
Duration: 3-5 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 5 sites
High priority sites: Surrey Heaths
Comments: Use most reliable recent site/s
Key Action 3
Proposed Action: Advise heathland land managers at and around current and former sites on importance for this species of habitat management focused on restoring/maintaining area/increasing continuity of mature stage heather. Refine advice in the light of Action 2.
Action targets: 7. Best approach adopted at appropriate scales
Action type: Habitat management
Duration: >10 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 10 sites
High priority sites: Surrey Heaths; Lyndhurst area heaths
Comments: Ensure species locations (Action1) and requirements (Action 2) are incorporated into planning of dry heathland restoration/reconnection projects e.g. Heathland Connections LR scheme on Surrey heaths
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.