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Biota of the Isle of Man

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This is a list of the known wild biota of the Isle of Man.

Non-native species are marked *, extinct species are marked †. If this status is uncertain the species is also marked ?.

Each listing follows the following format: English name (where one exists), binomial/trinomial scientific name with authorities for uncommon species, Manx name (where one exists), status.

Amphibia (amphibians)

Salamandridae (salamanders and newts)

Anura (frogs and toads)

Aves (birds)

Main article: List of birds of the Isle of Man

Gaviidae (divers)

Podicipedidae (grebes)

Hydrobatidae (petrels)

Procellariidae (shearwaters)

Sulidae (gannets and boobies)

Phalacrocoracidae (cormorants)

  • Cormorant, Phalacrocorax carbo (Fannag)
  • Shag, Phalacrocorax aristotelis (Fannag)

Ardeidae (egrets and herons)

Anatidae (swans, geese and ducks)

Accipitridae (hawks, eagles, kites and harriers)

Falconidae (falcons)

Phasianidae (partridges and quail)

Tetraonidae (grouse)

  • Black grouse, Tetrao tetrix† (extinct, native status uncertain but an introduced population is extinct)
  • Red grouse, Lagopus lagopus scoticus† (native, extinct by 1835, reintroduced 1880 and still extant) (Kellagh Ruy / Kiark Freoaie – Heath Hen).

Phasianidae (pheasants)

Rallidae (rails and crakes)

Haematopodidae (oystercatchers)

Scolopacidae (waders)

Scolopacidae (woodcock and snipe)

Laridae (gulls)

Alcidae (auks)

Columbidae (pigeons)

Tytonidae (barn owls)

Strigidae (other owls)

Hirundinidae (swallows)

Motacillidae (wagtails)

Troglodytidae (wrens)

  • Wren, Troglodytes troglodytes (Drean)

Prunellidae (dunnock)

Turdidae (thrushes)

Sylviidae (warblers)

Paridae (tits)

Sturnidae (starlings)

Corvidae (corvids)

Passeridae (sparrows)

Fringillidae (finches)

Emberizidae (buntings)

Insecta (insects)

Neuroptera (lacewings)

Trichoptera (caddisflies)

Odonata (dragonflies)

Orthoptera (grasshoppers and crickets)

Dermaptera (earwigs)

Dictyoptera (cochroaches)

Phasmida (stick-insects)

Diptera (true flies)

Coleoptera (beetles)

Hymenoptera (bees, wasps and ants)

Lepidoptera (butterflies and moths)

Pieridae (whites)

Lycaenidae (blues and coppers)

Satyridae (browns)

Nymphalidae (fritillaries and aristocrats)

Arctiidae (woolly worm moths)

Geometridae (geometers)

Sphingidae (hawkmoths)

Notodontidae (prominent moths)

Noctuidae (noctuids)

Hemiptera (true bugs)

Mammalia (mammals)

Chiroptera (bats)

As of 2020 research by the Manx Bat Group (https://manxbatgroup.org/) has found that there are at least nine species of Chiroptera found on the Isle of Man:

Lagomorpha (rabbits and hares)

  • Mountain hare, Lepus timidus †* (once extinct but now reintroduced, found only on the Northern Hills) (Mwaagh Slieu)
  • European hare, Lepus europaeus * (uncertain if introduced, found across the Isle of Man but note the Calf of Man) (Mwaagh Dhone)
  • European rabbit, Oryctolagus cuniculus * (found across the Island and on the Calf of Man in good numbers) (Conning)

Insectivora (insect-eaters)

Rodentia (rodents)

Carnivora (carnivores)

Cervidae (deer)

  • Irish elk, Megaloceros giganteus (Feeaih Mooar) †

Pinnipedia (seals and walruses)

  • Grey seal, Halichoerus grypus (Raun Glass)
  • Common seal, Phoca vitulina (Raun) (occasional, not known to breed)

Artiodactyla (even-toed ungulates or hoofed mammals)

Marsupialia (marsupials)

Cetacea (whales and dolphins)

Note that Manx nomenclature traditionally did not differentiate between species. Most whales are known as 'Muc Varrey' (sea pigs) or 'Perkin Mooar' and small dolphins as 'Doraid'.

Regularly seen species

Rarely seen species

Vagrant species

Extinct populations

Domestic animals

All sorts of domesticated species have been brought to the Isle of Man by humans over the millennia. Two notable landrace breeds have evolved distinctively on the island:

  • Manx cat, a domestic cat (Felis catus) with genetic abbreviation of the tail, which may range from no tail at all to essentially full-size. Developed as a standardised breed in the late 19th century, the Manx cat has become a popular breed worldwide, but is in danger of diseappearing on the island itself, as it is being out-bred by other cats imported over the last century by primarily English immigrants. The long-haired variety is called the Cymric cat in some breed registries, and was primarily developed in Canada, not the Isle of Man.
  • Manx Loaghtan, a variety of domestic sheep (Ovis aries) with brown wool and four horns, rare outside the island and considered "at risk" by the Rare Breeds Survival Trust. The dwindling numbers of the sheep have also caused a local decline in the population of wild corvid birds called choughs – the sheep keep grasses short, making the insect prey of the birds easier to find, and the sheep dung attracts beetles preferred by the birds.

Mollusca (molluscs)

Gastropoda (gastropods)

Stylommatophora (common land snails and slugs)

  • Limax cinereoniger (ash-black slug) found in remnant ancient woodland in 2011 after not being recorded for over 100 years.[16]

Order Trochida

Reptilia (reptiles)

Chondrichthyes (cartilagenous fish)

Osteichthyes (bony fish)

Arthropoda (arthropods)

The format here is common English name (if one exists), followed by scientific name, followed by authority in brackets. There are no Manx names.

Anostraca

Chirocephalidae

Arachnida (spiders)

218 species of Arachnids have been identified in the Isle of Man as of 1 January 2002.[18]

Pholcidae

Segestriidae

Dysderidae

Oonopidae

Mimetidae

Nesticidae

Theridiidae

Linyphiidae

Tetragnathidae

Araneidae

Lycosidae

Pisauridae

Agelenidae

Cybaeidae

Hahniidae

Dictynidae

Amaurobiidae

Liocranidae

Clubionidae

Gnaphosidae

Philodromidae

Thomisidae

Salticidae

Plants

Pinophyta (conifers)

Cupressaceae (cypresses)

Magnoliopsida

Brassicales

Nymphaeaceae (waterlilies)

Fungi

Mycetozoa (slime moulds)

Fungi

  • Hymenoscyphus fraxineus ash dieback fungus (previously known as Chalara fraxinea). First identified on Great Britain in 2012 and the Isle of Man in 2017. Since then the fungus has rapidly spread throughout the island.[19]

Strophariaceae (dung fungi)

Sixty-two species of dung fungi have been recorded in the Isle of Man as of 13 April 2009 by Michael J. Richardson, a British mycologist. The following are from a sample of rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) pellets collected at The Ayres on 6 January 2008.

Ascomycetes

Pezizales
Thelebolales
Helotiales
Sordariales
Microascales
Pleosporales

Basidiomycetes

Agaricales

Zygomycetes

Mucorales

Myxomycetes

References

  1. ^ a b BBC News | World | Europe | Isle of Man | Climate conference spots insects
  2. ^ https://www.manxradio.com/news/isle-of-man-news/new-bat-species-discovered/
  3. ^ https://www.manxradio.com/news/isle-of-man-news/further-confirmation-of-another-bat-species-on-iom/
  4. ^ https://manxbatgroup.org/wp-content/uploads/Manx-Bat-Group-Press-Release-Jan-2020.pdf
  5. ^ https://www.manxradio.com/news/isle-of-man-news/new-bat-found-on-isle-of-man/
  6. ^ http://www.mwdw.net/species/harbour-porpoise-phocoena-phocoena/
  7. ^ http://www.mwdw.net/species/378-2/
  8. ^ http://www.mwdw.net/species/short-beaked-common-dolphin/
  9. ^ http://www.mwdw.net/species/rissos-dolphin/
  10. ^ http://www.mwdw.net/species/minke-whale/
  11. ^ a b c http://www.mwdw.net/species/rare-species/
  12. ^ http://imuseum.im/search/collections/objects/mnh-museum-39653.html
  13. ^ https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-37198843
  14. ^ https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-isle-of-man-42426060
  15. ^ Perrin, William F.; Würsig, Bernd G.; Thewissen, J. G. M. (2009). Encyclopedia of marine mammals. Academic Press. p. 404. ISBN 978-0-12-373553-9.
  16. ^ a b c http://www.manxwt.org.uk/sites/default/files/manx_nature_springsummer_2020_final.pdf
  17. ^ https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-isle-of-man-29146540
  18. ^ Welcome to Isleofman.com - The online Manx Portal Archived May 17, 2008, at the Wayback Machine
  19. ^ https://www.gov.im/categories/home-and-neighbourhood/tree-protection/ash-dieback/
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