Alpine Bladder-fern (Cystopteris alpina)
Key Details
| Taxonomic Groups: | Vascular plant > fern > Fern |
| Red List Status: | Extinct (globally) (Not Relevant) [EX(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: | Cystopteris alpina |
| UKSI Recommended Authority: | (Lam.) Desv. |
| UKSI Recommended Qualifier: | (none specified) |
| Red List Citation: | in Stroh et al., 2014 |
| Notes on taxonomy/listing: | (none) |
Criteria
| Question 1: | Does species need conservation or recovery in England? |
| Response: | Yes |
| Justification: | This species is taxonomically difficult, lying within the broader remit of the C. fragilis group. Plants most closely approaching the species were recorded from a single site on Cronkley Scar (Upper Teesdale, County Durham) where it was last recorded in 1911. The identity of other plants in Scotland are under investigation (Stroh et al., 2023). |
| Question 2: | Does recovery/ conservation depend on species-specific actions? |
| Response: | No |
| Justification: | The plant has not been seen at Cronkley Scar for 113 years and, since identity of the species is uncertain, species-specific actions should not be attempted until the plant and its ecology are better 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: | This species would not benefit from untargeted management |
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.