This is a list of wild British Isles species extinct in the Holocene that covers extinctions from the Holocene epoch, a geologic epoch that began about 11,650 years before present (about 9700 BCE) and continues to the present day. The British Isles includes the islands of Great Britain and Ireland.
During much of the Neogene and Pleistocene, the British Isles were connected to mainland Europe by a land bridge called Doggerland. Changing glacial and interglacial climates repeatedly altered which species could survive there. The climate began to warm again around 9700 BCE, entering the present climatic period known as the Holocene. Animals repopulated Britain and Ireland. Rising sea levels after the end of the Last Glacial Period helped isolate Britain from mainland Europe, and Great Britain was finally cut off from the continent around 6225–6170 BCE, when the Storegga Slide tsunami flooded Doggerland.
In the early Holocene, warming temperatures and rising sea levels reduced or eliminated habitats used by some cold-adapted species. Later losses were attributed to humans, including hunting, habitat destruction, and the introduction of non-native species. Because Britain and Ireland are islands, depleted populations were less able to recolonize once they disappeared.
This list includes both globally extinct species (noted with †) and locally extinct (extirpated) species. Some species have gone extinct several times and then recolonized. The date given is of the most recent extinction. Species that have been reintroduced by humans are noted.
Mammals
Common nameSpeciesOrderExtinction/extirpation dateNotesReindeerRangifer tarandusArtiodactylac. 9,000 BCEExtirpated in Ireland c. 7500 BCE. Reindeer were re-established in 1952; approximately 150–170 reindeer live around the Cairngorms region in Scotland.WolverineGulo guloCarnivorac. 9,000 BCEArctic lemming Dicrostonyx torquatus Rodentia c. 8,000 BCE Steppe lemming Lagurus lagurus Rodentia c. 8,000 BCE Narrow-headed voleMicrotus gregalisRodentiac. 8,000 BCESteppe pikaOchotona pusillaLagomorphac. 8,000 BCEArctic foxVulpes lagopusCarnivorac. 8,000 BCEWild horseEquus ferus ferusPerissodactylac. 8,000 BCERe-established proxy in the form of free-roaming domestic horses Set up by the Wildwood Trust, Konik horses have been established across many reserves as a proxy for the extinct tarpan.Eurasian elk (moose)Alces alcesArtiodactylac. 3,600 BCEIn 2008, Eurasian elk were released into a fenced reserve on the Alladale Estate in the Highlands of Scotland.Tundra voleMicrotus oeconomusRodentiac. 1,500 BCE†AurochsBos primigenius primigeniusArtiodactylac. 1,000 BCESelect breeds of free-roaming domestic cattle are used as an ecological proxy as part of some conservation grazing initiatives.Walrus Odobenus rosmarus Carnivora c. 1,000 BCE Extirpated as a breeder; occasional vagrantBrown bear Ursus arctos Carnivora c. 500 CE c. 1000 – 500 BCE in Ireland; see Bears in Ireland There have been calls for the reintroduction of the Eurasian lynx, brown bear and grey wolf to the UK, because no large predators are living in viable populations in Great Britain. It is theorized that a large predators presence could create a trophic cascade, thus improving the ecosystem.Eurasian lynx Lynx lynx Carnivora c. 700 CE or c. 1760Subfossil evidence suggests an early medieval extinction, but a written record indicates persistence in Scotland into the late 18th century.Wild boar Sus scrofa Artiodactyla c. 1400 Reintroduced to Britain, extirpated from Ireland.Keuling, O. & Leus, K. 2019. Sus scrofa. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2019: e.T41775A44141833. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-3.RLTS.T41775A44141833.en. Downloaded on 26 August 2021. In 1998, MAFF, now known as DEFRA released a report concerning the presence of two populations of wild boar living freely in the UK. These boar are thought to have escaped from wildlife parks, zoos and from farms where they are farmed for their meat, and gone on to establish breeding populations.Eurasian beaverCastor fiberRodentia: Castoridae1526Reintroduced to Britain; never known to have lived in Ireland European beavers have been reintroduced to parts of Scotland, and there are plans to bring them back to other parts of Britain. A five-year trial reintroduction at Knapdale in Argyll started in 2009 and concluded in 2014. A few hundred beavers live wild in the Tay river basin, as a result of escapes from a wildlife park. A similar reintroduction trial is being undertaken on the river otter in Devon, England. Also, around the country, beavers have been introduced into fenced reserves for many reasons including flood prevention. In 2016, beavers were recognised as a British native species, and will be protected under law.Grey wolfCanis lupusCarnivora17861166 in Wales, 1390 in England, 1680 in Scotland/Britain, 1786 in Ireland; see Wolves in Great Britain and Wolves in IrelandGreater mouse-eared batMyotis myotisChiroptera1990A solitary male was recorded at a single hibernation site in Sussex from 2002 to 2022. In 2023 two individuals were recorded in Sussex. Species is effectively extirpated, with no maternity sites found in the UK. The European bison (Bison bonasus) is not conclusively recorded from the British Isles during the Holocene. Three female bison were introduced to the West Blean and Thornden Woods in Kent, England on 18 July 2022. A calf, also female, was unexpectedly born in September 2022 and in December 2022 a bull was introduced. These five bison are first "complete" wild herd in the UK in thousands of years. As of October 2024, the herd consists of three females, a bull and four calves.
Birds Common nameSpeciesOrderExtinction/extirpation dateNotesCommon craneGrus grusGruiformesLate medieval periodRe-establishedCorn crakeCrex crexGruiformes20th centuryExtirpated in most of England and Wales, clings on in the Scottish Highlands and western Ireland. Ongoing reintroduction projects into parts of England and Scotland. Dalmatian pelicanPelecanus crispusPelecaniformesc. 3,000 BCEGadfly petrelPterodroma sp.ProcellariiformesUnknown Pterodroma species, presumed Fea's petrel) – Iron AgeEurasian spoonbillPlatalea leucorodiaPelecaniformes17th century (as a breeding bird)Re-established†Great aukPinguinus impennisCharadriiformes1844Great bustardOtis tardaOtidiformes19th centuryReintroduced. Ongoing projects on Salisbury Plain.Kentish ploverAnarhynchus alexandrinusCharadriiformes20th century (last breeding record 1979)Little egret Egretta garzettaPelecaniformesLate medieval periodRe-establishedPied avocet Recurvirostra avosettaCharadriiformes19th centuryRe-establishedRed-backed shrikeLanius collurioPasseriformes1989 (as a regular breeding bird)Western capercaillieTetrao urogallusGalliformes1780sReintroducedWhite stork Ciconia ciconiaCiconiiformes1416Reintroduced. Around 20 white storks pass through the UK each year. A colony at the Knepp Wildland in West Sussex hopes to reinforce these off-path migrants by introducing adults into a fenced reserve, where the juveniles born will be able to establish other colonies further afield. Similar projects are occurring in Derbyshire, by Celtic Rewilding, and DevonEurasian wryneck Jynx torquillaPiciformesAs a regular breeding birdWhite-tailed eagleHaliaeetus albicillaAccipitriformes1916Reintroduction projects underway. Successfully re-established on the western coast of Scotland. Western marsh harrierCircus aeruginosusAccipitriformesLate 19th centuryRe-establishedEurasian goshawkAstur gentilisAccipitriformesLate 19th centuryRe-establishedRed kiteMilvus milvusAccipitriformes1870s (England), 1886 (Scotland)Reintroduced. Having clung on in parts of Wales, red kites have been successfully re-established in parts of England and Scotland. OspreyPandion haliaetusAccipitriformes1916Re-establishedEurasian eagle-owlBubo buboStrigiformesc. 8,000 BCERe-established
Reptiles Established in 2020, Celtic Rewilding, aims to reintroduce the lost species of reptile and amphibian that once inhabited Britain, back to rewilding projects. These include the moor frog, European tree frog, agile frog and European pond turtle. They have already had significant success breeding the moor frog in captivity. The organisation also wants to see European pond turtles re-established within wetland restoration projects. Common nameSpeciesOrderExtinction/extirpation dateNotesEuropean pond turtleEmys orbicularisTestudines≤ 3000 BCECurrently being reintroduced by Celtic Rewilding
Amphibians Common nameSpeciesOrderExtinction/extirpation dateNotesAgile frogRana dalmatinaAnurac. <1800Present on Jersey. The species likely became extinct due to deforestation. Moor frogRana arvalisAnurac. <1800The species likely perished due to a combination of peat-digging (for fuel) and wetland drainage. Pool frogPelophylax lessonaeAnura1999 Reintroduced The northern clade of the pool frog was reintroduced from Swedish stock in 2005, to a single site in Norfolk, England, following detailed research to prove that it had been native before its extinction around 1993.European tree frogHyla arboreaAnuraThere have been calls for the return of the European tree frog to the wild.
Fish Burbot – A fisherman caught the last recorded burbot in September 1969 from the Old West River (Great Ouse), near Aldreth, Cambridgeshire. The species was then presumed extirpated. †Orkney charr – last reported in 1908 and declared extinct in the IUCN Red List in 2024
Insects Beetles
Agonum sahlbergi (ground beetle) – 1914 Platycerus caraboides (blue stag beetle) – 19th century Graphoderus bilineatus (water beetle) – 1906 Harpalus honestus (ground beetle) – 1905 Copris lunaris (horned dung beetle) – 1974 Ochthebius aeneus (water beetle) – 1913 Platydema violaceum (tenebrionid) – 1957 Rhantus aberratus (water beetle) – 1904 Scybalicus oblongiusculus (ground beetle) – 1926 Teretrius fabricii (histerid) – 1907
Bees, wasps and ants
Andrena polita (mining bee) – 1934 Bombus pomorum (apple bumblebee) – 1864 Bombus cullumanus (Cullum's bumblebee) – 1941 Eucera tuberculata (mining bee) – 1941 Halictus maculatus (mining bee) – 1930 Mellinus crabroneus (digger wasp) – c. 1950 Odynerus reniformis (mason wasp) – 1915 Odynerus simillimus (mason wasp) – 1905 Bombus subterraneus (short-haired bumblebee) – 1989
Flies Poecilobothrus majesticus – after 1907
Butterflies and moths
General reference: Waring et al., 2009.; Aporia crataegi, black-veined white – 1925 Borkhausenia minutella – 1950 Lithophane furcifera, conformist (moth) Euclemensia woodiella (moth) – 1829 Flame brocade (moth) – 1919 Frosted yellow (moth) – 1914 Gypsy moth – 1907; reappeared 1995 Isle of Wight wave (moth) – 1931 Large copper – 1865 Large tortoiseshell – 1960s (recolonising from 2019) Many-lined (moth) – 1875 Mazarine blue – 1906 Orache moth – 1915 Reed tussock (moth) – 1875 Scarce black arches (moth) – 1898 (transitory resident) Speckled beauty (moth) – 1898 Union rustic (moth) – 1919 Viper's bugloss (moth) – 1969 The large blue butterfly has been successfully re-established from Swedish stock at several sites, but very few of these are open-access.
Dragonflies and damselflies
Norfolk damselfly – 1957 Orange-spotted emerald (dragonfly) – 1957
Caddisflies
Hydropsyche bulgaromanorum (caddis fly) – 1926 Hydropsyche exocellata (caddis fly) – 1901
Cicada Cicadetta montana (New Forest cicada) – not seen in Britain since 2000.
Arachnids Gibbaranea bituberculata — 1954 Hypsosinga heri — 1912 Mastigusa arietina — 1926
Crustaceans Artemia salina (brine shrimp) – after 1758
Molluscs
Land snails Fruticicola fruticum Cernuella neglecta
Plants The following are plant species which are or have been held to be at least nationally extinct in Britain and Ireland, since Britain was cut off from the European continent, including any which have been reintroduced or reestablished, not including regional extirpations. Many of these species persist in other countries.