Narrow-leaved Helleborine (Cephalanthera longifolia)
Key Details
| Taxonomic Groups: | Vascular plant > flowering plant > Herbaceous plant |
| 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: | Cephalanthera longifolia |
| UKSI Recommended Authority: | (L.) Fritsch |
| 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: | About 25 extant localities in England, averaging 35 plants per colony. Just one population at Chappetts Copse, Hants, supports 80% of English population. |
| Question 2: | Does recovery/ conservation depend on species-specific actions? |
| Response: | Yes |
| Justification: | The species survives best in open gladed woodland, with management (e.g. hay cut & rake) of ground vegetation & leaf litter mimicking traditional woodland management. |
| 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: | Within key areas (e.g. East Hampshire Hangers, lower Wye Valley) diversification of woodland management could benefit species - actions include general woodland thinning & glading (particularly corridors expanding and/or linking colonies), introduction of woodland meadow management, & introduction of intermittent woodland grazing combined with appropriate deer control. |
Species Assessment
| Current step on the Species Recovery Curve (SRC): | 6. Recovery solutions trialled |
| Recovery potential/expectation: | Medium-high |
| National Monitoring Resource: | Combination - insufficient |
| Species Comments: | Species has responded very well to targeted management at key sites. Need to roll out similar management to poorly managed localities |
Key Actions
Key Action 1
Proposed Action: Monitor all populations on a 2 - 3 yearly basis, recording numbers of plants, inflorescences & % seed pod set. Record conditions of sites. Review future management in light of new findings.
Action targets: 3. National Monitoring Plan agreed and implemented
Action type: Targeted monitoring
Duration: 6-10 years
Scale of Implementation: National
High priority sites: Sites with fewer than 20 plants
Comments: Ongoing action
Key Action 2
Proposed Action: Manage all English populations through programme of woodland thinning & glading; introduction of meadow management of ground vegetation (including leaf litter); protection from deer browsing; & hand pollination of flowers where appropriate.
Action targets: 7. Best approach adopted at appropriate scales
Action type: Habitat management
Duration: >10 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 20 sites
High priority sites:
Comments: Prioritise populations with < 20 plants
Key Action 3
Proposed Action: Review role of wood meadow management & wood pasture management in chalk & limestone woodlands, trialling different management protocols including grazing, hay cutting, & leaf litter removal etc. Record methodology & monitor / analyse results.
Action targets: 4. Autecology and pressures understood
Action type: Scientific research
Duration: >10 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 10 sites
High priority sites:
Comments: Species is a member of open, permanently gladed woodland species group that are significant decline in England
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.