Extinct Animals of Great Britain and Ireland
This page features the extinct animals of Great Britain and Ireland (Éire). Only a small number of these are globally extinct, most famously the Irish elk, great auk and woolly mammoth. Most of the remainder survive to some extent outside Great Britain and Ireland. The list includes introduced species only where they were able to form self-sustaining colonies for a time. Only species extinct since Great Britain and Ireland were separated from mainland Europe are included.
Great Britain and Ireland were home to several mammals that are lost today. The Artic fox (Alopex lagopus), woolly mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius), and the Saiga antelope (Saiga tatarica) disappeared around 10.500 BC. The Artic lemming (Dicrostonyx torquatus), narrow-headed vole (Microtus gregalis), Norway lemming (Lemmus lemmus) became extinct around 8.500 BC, while the pika (Ochotona pusilla) survived until about 8.000 BC. The European wild horse (Equus ferus) only survived on Great Britain and Ireland until about 7.000 BC. The Irish or giant elk (Megaloceros giganteus) disappeared around 7000 BC. The wolverine (Gulo gulo) and reindeer (Rangifer tarandus) became extinct around 6000 BC, although in 1952 AD reindeer were reintroduced again in Scotland. The northern vole (Microtus oeconomus) and the elk (Alces alces) were gone around 1500 BC. The aurochs (Bos primigenius primigenius) became probably extinct around 1000 AD. The brown Bear (Ursus arctos) did not survive in Ireland, on the most optimistic estimate, beyond about 4,000 BC, while its extinction in the whole Great Britain and Ireland was probably around 500-1000 AD, but may also have been as early as 500 BC. The Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx) disappeared around 400AD, while the European beaver (Castor fiber) survived until about 1300 AD.
All these mammals became extinct in Great Britain and Ireland a long time ago, but some mammals disappeared in more recent times. The list below here will show you the recent extinctions of these native animals.
| Common English Name | Common Irish Name | Scientific Name |
| Eurasian Lynx | Lincse Eoráiseach | Lynx lynx |
| The presence of Eurasian lynx as a former native species in Britain during the Holocene is known from bones recovered from several sites. The discovery in Moughton Fell Fissure Cave, near Settle, in the 19th Century led experts to believe the lynx became extinct in the UK Mesolithic times 3500 years ago, but in recent years a lynx bone from Scotland was carbon dated to c1800 BP (c150 AD). The latest findings, sponsored by the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority were on bones from two caves near Settle, one of which was dated to c1842 BP (c 108 AD) and the other to c1550 BP (c450 AD). These dates support the view that the game animal whose occurrence in the nearby Lake District is described in the early 7th century Cumbric text Pais Dinogad, and whose translation to date has been problematic, is a lynx. The occurrence of lynx in early medieval Britain shows that earlier periods of climate change, previously blamed for the species' extinction in Britain, were not responsible. Instead, anthropogenic factors such as severe deforestation, declining deer populations, and persecution, are likely to have caused the extirpation of lynx in Britain. Consequently, the lynx qualifies as a candidate for reintroduction. Large-scale reafforestation, the growth of deer populations, and more positive attitudes towards carnivores in modern society, could permit the restoration of lynx to Britain, particularly in Scotland. (Hetherington, Lord & Jacobi, 2005) | ||
| Grey Whale | Míol Mór Glas | Eschrichtius robustus |
| The North Atlantic population of the grey whale is now extinct, but though subfossil finds and with literacy evidence it is shown to have existed on both sides of the North Atlantic and along the North American shores up till the seventeenth century (Klinowska 1991). Andrew Ramsey and Owen Nevin of the University of Lancaster's School of Natural Resources in northern England propose airlifting 50 surplus grey whales from the Californian population for release off the coast of northern England, starting in 2015. (BBC News 2005) | ||
| Greater Mouse-eared Bat | Unknown | Myotis myotis |
| Small populations of the greater mouse-eared bat once existed in Dorset and Sussex, but these were lost due largely to collection and roost destruction. It has been extinct in the UK since 1990. (UKBAP 2006) A lone male died in Sussex is thought to be the last surviving individual until 1990. This last Greater Mouse-eared Bat recorded in the United Kingdom was at least 13 years old. However in 2001 an elderly female mouse-eared was found in Bognor, but died a few days later. Then in December 2002, a single young male was discovered hibernating in a tunnel near Chichester. Because of these recent sightings there remains some hope that this species still survives somewhere in Sussex. (Bradley 2006) | ||
| Wolf | Faolchú | Canis lupus lupus |
| Once wolves were very common on Great Britain and Ireland, but their number declined enormously after heavy persecution until it. In Wales, wolves disappeared probably in the early medieval period. The reference of a wolf in Wales is from the year 1166, when it was reported that a so-called "madwolf" killed 22 people. This story is most likely highly exaggerated of not true at all. In 1281, Edward I of England ordered the extermination of all wolves in England. He personally employed one Peter Corbet and gave him instructions to "take and destroy all the wolves he could find" in the counties of "Gloucestershire, Herefordshire, Worchestershire, Shropshire and Staffordshire". His campaign was quite successful and references of wolves became fewer. During 1422-1460, the reign of Henry VI of England, authorities in England were not completely sure that wolves were totally exterminated. However, by the time of Henry VII of England, who reigned from 1485 to 1509, the wolf was certainly extinct in England. In Scotland wolves survived until the 17th century. Writing in 1769, the naturalist Thomas Pennant, says that after extensive inquiries and searches he was of the opinion that wolves in Scotland were extinct. The wolf's last stronghold was Ireland. Also in Ireland legislation was passed in 1652, 1653 and again in 1662, promoting the destruction of wolves. The Irish Council offered high rewards for the killing of wolves. 6 pounds for a female wolf, 5 pounds for a male and 40 shilling for each cub. The last reliable observation of a wolf in Ireland, surprisingly comes from county Carlow when a wolf was hunted down and killed near Mount Leinster for killing sheep in 1786 (Moffat, 1938). (Hickey 2000; Stanmore 2006) | ||
Reintroduced
| Common English Name | Common Irish Name | Scientific Name |
| Boar | Torc | Sus scrofa scrofa |
| Wild Boar probably became extinct in Great Britain in the 13th century. King James I of England reintroduced boar from France into Windsor Park in 1608. In 1611, he released some boar from Germany. His son, Charles I of England released boar from Germany into the New Forest. These new populations did not survive, because people saw them as agricultural pests. By 1700 the wild boar was extinct again in Britain from hunting and loss of habitat. Sporadic escapes of captive wild boar have occurred since the 1970's. Early escapes occurred from Wildlife Parks, but since the early 1990's more escapes have occurred from farms as wild boar farming has increased in popularity. By the mid 1990's a breeding population was rumoured to have established in areas of Kent and East Sussex. On the 21st October 1998 DEFRA (then known as MAFF) issued a News Release concerning the results of their study on wild boar living free in Britain. The study confirmed the presence of two populations of wild boar living in Britain. The wild boar is not extinct anymore. (Goulding 2006, Wikipedia contributors 2006) | ||
By the late Iron Age, Great Britain and Ireland already lost some their larger bird species from a combination of climate change, deforestation and disturbance, like the Dalmatian Pelican, Cory's Shearwater and the Barnacle Goose. The wetlands that were drained to make way for farmland during the 1600's perhaps had the most dynamic effect on bird diversity and abundance. The early parts of the 1600's saw the disappearance of two large species, the Common Crane and the Eurasian Spoonbill. Later more birds disappeared and many surviving species are still declining. Some of the lost birds recolonised Great Britain and Ireland, others were reintroduced.
| Common English Name | Common Irish Name | Scientific Name |
| Black Tern | Geabhróg Dhubh | Chlidonias niger |
| The Black Tern was gone in 1885 as a breeding bird. Although there is good habitat management in the last 50 years, Black Terns are still sporadic and erratic breeders in the UK. (Portugal, 2002) They are mostly seen during spring passage in May, and from July to September on autumn passage. (Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, 2005) | ||
| Dalmatian Pelican | Peileacán Dalmátach | Pelecanus crispus |
| Dalmatian Pelicans were driven to extinction by disturbance and hunting in the late Iron Age, around 1000 BC. (Portugal, 2002) | ||
| Eurasian Eagle Owl | Rí-ulchabhán | Bubo bubo |
| The disappearance of the Eagle Owl around 1000 BC is a bit more of a mystery, but likely to be a result of deforestation. (Portugal, 2002) | ||
| Great Auk | Falcóg Mhór | Pinguinus impennis |
| The Great Auk was a regular breeder on the northern isles of St. Kilda, Orkney and Shetland. Martin Martins first described it in 1698 and by the eighteenth century it was referred to as scarce. The last Great Auk in Britain was a male shot in Papa Westray in 1813, and the last of its kind in Iceland in 1844. (Portugal, 2002) | ||
| Great Bustard | Bustard Mór | Otis tarda |
| The Great Bustard was vulnerable because of its size and edibility, need of large open spaces, and intolerance of disturbance at nest sites. Surprisingly it managed to hold on to the 19th century before dying out. (Portugal, 2002) The Great Bustard has been extinct in the UK since 1832. In the 1830s Bustards had a reputation for being very good to eat so many of them were hunted and killed. In 2004 a scheme that is bringing 40 chicks from Russia to the UK (Salisbury Plain) hopes to change all that. | ||
| Kentish Plover | Feadóigín Chosdubh | Charadrius alexandrinus |
| Before the 1920's Kentish Plovers were still up to twenty pairs breeding regularly along the south coast, by 1940 there were only sporadic breeding attempts and it is now only a rare vagrant mainly to Sussex, Kent and Dorset. Probable reasons for this disappearance are a change in climate and more importantly, an increase in human disturbance on their breeding haunts of shingle beaches. Mans main influence has been in his tendency to introduce foreign species, either for commercial, shooting or ornamental purposes, and it's easy to forget which species are native and those which are not. (Portugal, 2002) | ||
Reintroduced and Recolonised Birds
| Common English Name | Common Irish Name | Scientific Name |
| Barnacle Goose | Gé Ghiúrainn | Branta leucopsis |
| The Barnacle Goose is a long lost breeder due to a change in the climate in the late Iron Age, around 1000 BC. (Portugal, 2002) Later they recolonised Great Britain and Ireland. Now the largest numbers are on the Solway Firth (England and Scotland) and on Islay, Scotland. They're also back on the Irish Island. (Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, 2005) | ||
| Black-tailed Godwit | Guilbneach Earrdhubh | Limosa limosa |
| Black Tailed godwits ceased to breed on Great Britain and Ireland in 1885. (Portugal, 2002) | ||
| Capercaillie | Capall Coille | Tetrao urogallus |
| The Scottish population became extinct, but has been reintroduced from the Swedish population. The new UK Capercaillie population has declined so rapidly that it is at very real risk of extinction (for the second time) and is a 'Red List' species. | ||
| Common Crane | Grús Coiteann | Grus grus |
| The Common Crane need large areas of fens and wetlands and are highly intolerant of human disturbance at nest sites. This species disappeared as a breeding bird around 1620, but a tiny population now breeds again in the Norfolk Broads. | ||
| Cory's Shearwater | Cánóg Cory | Calonectris diomedea |
| The Cory's Shearwater is a long lost breeder due to a change in the climate in the late Iron Age, around 1000 BC. (Portugal, 2002) Later they recolonised Great Britain and Ireland. In late summer and autumn, most birds migrate into the Atlantic as far north as the south-western coasts of Great Britain and Ireland. | ||
| Eurasian Spoonbill | Leitheadach Eoráiseach | Platalea leucorodia |
| The Eurasian Spoonbill need large areas of fens and wetlands and are highly intolerant of human disturbance at nest sites. This species disappeared as a breeding bird around 1620. Although still uncommon this bird is back, spoonbills can be seen on coastal sites in north-west and south-west England and East Anglia. (Portugal 2002; Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, 2005) | ||
| Ruff | Rufachán | Philomachus pugax |
| The Ruff disappeared from Great Britain and Ireland in 1871. (Portugal, 2002) This bird is back again. It breeds in a very few lowland sites in eastern England, and it appears that numbers are dropping. It is a migrant but in the UK some birds are present all year round. Many young birds from Scandinavia visit the UK in late summer, then migrating on to Africa. (Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, 2005) | ||
| White-tailed Eagle | Iolar Mara | Haliaeetus albicilla |
| It was persecuted to extinction in the UK in the early 19th century and the present population has been reintroduced. Now it is a rare breeding bird which is confined to the west coast of Scotland. | ||
| Common English Name | Common Irish Name | Scientific Name |
| European Pond Terrapin | Lochthurtar Eorpach | Emys orbicularis |
| The
European Pond turtle (or terrapin) has a wide distribution throughout
continental |
||
| Common English Name | Common Irish Name | Scientific Name |
| Pool Frog | Unknown | Rana lessonae |
| The status of the pool frog in Britain is uncertain, but a series of factors indicate that it may be native and not simply a recent introduction. The possibly native populations of this species may now be extinct in the wild in Britain. At potentially the last remaining native UK site for the species, in Norfolk, there have been no confirmed sightings since 1993 and only a single male animal from that population exists in captivity. Pool frog is found across much of central Europe, as far north as south-west Sweden and Norway and as far east as Asia. | ||
| Common English Name | Common Irish Name | Scientific Name |
| Burbot | Lota | Lota Lota |
| The burbot is the only fish known to have become extinct in Great Britain in recent centuries. It was restricted to rivers in eastern England from County Durham to the Great Ouse. There has been no authenticated record of the species in the UK for over 50 years. Despite debate over the last two decades, there is no consensus on the reasons for the extinction of the burbot in England. Certainly, all the rivers from which the species was previously recorded still contain fish. One of the objectives of this action plan is to seek a consensus view on the most likely causes, using evidence from England and continental Europe. | ||
| Houting | Unknown | Coregonus oxyrhynchus |
| The houting is an anadromous whitefish which spawns in large rivers from which the young migrate to the sea to develop and grow to maturity. They then return to their natal rivers to breed. In Great Britain this species (which some authorities regard as merely a subspecies of Coregonus lavaretus) is only ever known to have occurred as a vagrant in coastal waters off the south east coast of England and in a few estuaries there (eg Colne and Medway). None has been recorded in British waters for several decades. The original distribution of the houting was in the Baltic Sea and eastern parts of the North Sea and several large rivers (eg Elbe, Rhine, Weser) into which adults migrated to spawn. The stocks of this species have greatly declined during the second half of the 20th century and several populations have disappeared In Great Britain this species is classified as Extinct. Recently this species has been declared extinct worldwide. | ||
References
BBC News. 2005. US whales may be brought to UK, Monday, 18 July, 2005. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/cumbria/4692193.stm.
Bradley, G. 2006. Greater Mouse-Eared Bat - Myotis myotis - UK Safari. http://www.uksafari.com/mouseeared.htm. Downloaded on on 22 December 2006.
Goulding, M. 2006. Wild Boar in Britain, http://www.britishwildboar.org.uk. Downloaded on on 22 December 2006.
Hetherington, D. A., Lord, T. C. and Jacobi, R. M. 2005. New evidence for the occurrence of Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx) in medieval Britain. J. Quaternary Sci., Vol. 21 pp. 3-8. ISSN 0267-8179.
Hickey, K.R. 2000. A geographical perspective on the decline and extermination of the Irish wolf Canis lupus - an initial assessment. Irish Geography, Volume 33(2), 185-198. (Pdf available online)
Klinowska, M. 1991. Dolphins, Porpoises and Whales on the World. IUCN. Gland, Switzerland.
Moffat, C.B. 1938. The mammals of Ireland, Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy, 44B, 61-128.
Portugal, S. 2002. The History of Britains Birds. Birds of Britain (Monthly Web Magazine).
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. 2005. Guides - A to Z of UK Birds. http://www.rspb.org.uk. Downloaded on 24 December 2005.
Stanmore, Ivy. 2006. The Disappearance of Wolves in the British Isles. In: Wolf Song of Alaska. Downloaded on on 22 December 2006.
University of Central Lancashire (UCLan). 2005. All the way from America: Flying Whales from California to Cumbria. 19th July 2005. Media and Public Relations Office.
UKBAP. 2006. Action plan for Myotis myotis. http://www.ukbap.org.uk/UKPlans.aspx?ID=466. UK Biodiversity Action Plan. Downloaded on on 22 December 2006.
Wikipedia contributors, "Wild Boar in Britain," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Wild_Boar_in_Britain&oldid=91099079. Downloaded on on 22 December 2006.
European Union (EU) - Environment - Nature and Biodiversity
Wolf Trust: understanding of wolves & natural heritage of Scottish Highlands
ESA - Exotic Scotish Animals - Introductions and extinctions
The Mammal Society - A Short History of the British Mammal Fauna
Birds of Britain, Monthly Web Magazine - The History of Britains Birds, by Steven Portugal