Oxlip (Primula elatior)
Key Details
| Taxonomic Groups: | Vascular plant > flowering plant > Herbaceous plant |
| Red List Status: | Near Threatened (Not Relevant) [NT(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: | Primula elatior |
| UKSI Recommended Authority: | (L.) Hill |
| 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: | Assessed as LC in England by Stroh et al. (2014). All of the native subpopulations are found in England. The forthcoming revision of the GB Red List (Stroh et al., in prep) will assess this species as LC. However, in ancient woodland, its primary habitat, numbers have been reduced following the cessation of coppicing or the planting of conifers, and herbivory by deer is considered by far the greatest threat to populations. |
| Question 2: | Does recovery/ conservation depend on species-specific actions? |
| Response: | Yes |
| Justification: | Herbivory by deer requires addressing (i.e. the culling of deer in a systematic way and at a landscape-scale) if this species is to recover to past numbers. |
| 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: | Herbivory by deer requires addressing (i.e. the culling of deer in a systematic way and at a landscape-scale) if this species is to recover to past numbers. |
Species Assessment
| Current step on the Species Recovery Curve (SRC): | 5. Remedial action identified |
| Recovery potential/expectation: | Medium-high |
| National Monitoring Resource: | Opportunistic - sufficient |
| Species Comments: |
Key Actions
Key Action 1
Proposed Action: Monitor ancient woodland that contain native oxlip populations and assess the current level of herbivory by deer
Action targets: 4. Autecology and pressures understood
Action type: Scientific research
Duration: 2 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 20 sites
High priority sites: Woodlands in Cambridgeshire and West Suffolk that are, at a landscape scale, connected by deer movement, and where action to cull at one location could act as a sink for deer at a second location.
Comments:
Key Action 2
Proposed Action: Coordinate with deer culling networks in the relevant areas (see action 1) to establish a deer culling regime that will lead to a reduction in browsing pressure over time.
Action targets: 6. Recovery solutions trialled
Action type: Habitat management
Duration: >10 years
Scale of Implementation: ≤ 50 sites
High priority sites: Woodlands in Cambridgeshire and West Suffolk that are, at a landscape scale, connected by deer movement, and where action to cull at one location could act as a sink for deer at a second location.
Comments:
Key Action 3
Proposed Action: Monitor the outcomes of action 2; i.e. assess the health of Oxlip populations, with regard to the impact of herbivory post-culling
Action targets: 6. Recovery solutions trialled
Action type: Scientific research
Duration: 3-5 years
Scale of Implementation: Unknown
High priority sites: Woodlands in Cambridgeshire and West Suffolk that are, at a landscape scale, connected by deer movement, and where action to cull at one location could act as a sink for deer at a second location.
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.