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.
Azure damselfly, Coenagrion puella - thought extinct as it was recorded in just two years from Poyll Dhooie,
Ramsey but refound at Ballaugh Plantation/Glen Shoggle on 10 June 2023.[1]
Dark bush-cricket, Pholidoptera griseoaptera - Found only on the Lonan coast and around the
Glen Maye ASSI - protected under Schedule 5 of the Wildlife Act 1990
Speckled bush-cricket, Leptophyes punctatissima - Found only along south coast, including Glen Chass,
Port St. Mary and in the west at
Glen Maye ASSI - protected under Schedule 5 of the Wildlife Act 1990[2]
Lesser mottled grasshopper, Stenobothrus stigmaticus - Found only on the
Langness ASSI, the only locality in the British Isles - protected under Schedule 5 of the Wildlife Act 1990
Bombylius minor,
heath bee-fly, a protected species. Current (2022) British Isles distribution seems to be limited to the Dorset heaths and the north coast of the Isle of Man at The Ayres, The Phurt (Ramsey) and The Lhen[3]
Scarce Crimson and Gold moth, Pyrausta sanguinalis, a small distinctively marked moth, dark yellow with crimson bands across the forewings merging with crimson edging. It is scarce and local in the British Isles and appears to be confined to areas of Northern Ireland, the Burren in the Republic of Ireland and the Isle of Man. Here, it is only found along the northern coast at The Ayres National Nature Reserve, where its larvae live in silken tubes and feed on the flowers of wild thyme growing in the former sand pits. At The Ayres adults fly during the day mostly in June but have been recorded in July and into early August. The species was once more widespread in Britain but has declined in recent years and is thought to be extinct in its former range in north-west England and Scotland.[8]
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'.
Sei whale, Balaenoptera borealis – a single adult was stranded on
Langness in May 1925. Its skeleton is on display in the Natural History Gallery of the
Manx Museum[21]
Striped dolphin, Stenella coeruleoalba - on 20 December 2017 a single striped dolphin beached and died in Castletown harbour and was preserved for display within the
Manx Museum[23]
Extinct populations
Grey whale, Eschrichtius robustus – a coastal whale probably once found in the
Irish Sea, however the species'
North Atlantic population was extirpated in the 18th century.[24]
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 disappearing 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.
As of September 2022, 1801 distinct species from the Kingdom
Fungi have been recorded on NBN Atlas Isle of Man.[30]
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.[31]
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.
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.
Azure damselfly, Coenagrion puella - thought extinct as it was recorded in just two years from Poyll Dhooie,
Ramsey but refound at Ballaugh Plantation/Glen Shoggle on 10 June 2023.[1]
Dark bush-cricket, Pholidoptera griseoaptera - Found only on the Lonan coast and around the
Glen Maye ASSI - protected under Schedule 5 of the Wildlife Act 1990
Speckled bush-cricket, Leptophyes punctatissima - Found only along south coast, including Glen Chass,
Port St. Mary and in the west at
Glen Maye ASSI - protected under Schedule 5 of the Wildlife Act 1990[2]
Lesser mottled grasshopper, Stenobothrus stigmaticus - Found only on the
Langness ASSI, the only locality in the British Isles - protected under Schedule 5 of the Wildlife Act 1990
Bombylius minor,
heath bee-fly, a protected species. Current (2022) British Isles distribution seems to be limited to the Dorset heaths and the north coast of the Isle of Man at The Ayres, The Phurt (Ramsey) and The Lhen[3]
Scarce Crimson and Gold moth, Pyrausta sanguinalis, a small distinctively marked moth, dark yellow with crimson bands across the forewings merging with crimson edging. It is scarce and local in the British Isles and appears to be confined to areas of Northern Ireland, the Burren in the Republic of Ireland and the Isle of Man. Here, it is only found along the northern coast at The Ayres National Nature Reserve, where its larvae live in silken tubes and feed on the flowers of wild thyme growing in the former sand pits. At The Ayres adults fly during the day mostly in June but have been recorded in July and into early August. The species was once more widespread in Britain but has declined in recent years and is thought to be extinct in its former range in north-west England and Scotland.[8]
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'.
Sei whale, Balaenoptera borealis – a single adult was stranded on
Langness in May 1925. Its skeleton is on display in the Natural History Gallery of the
Manx Museum[21]
Striped dolphin, Stenella coeruleoalba - on 20 December 2017 a single striped dolphin beached and died in Castletown harbour and was preserved for display within the
Manx Museum[23]
Extinct populations
Grey whale, Eschrichtius robustus – a coastal whale probably once found in the
Irish Sea, however the species'
North Atlantic population was extirpated in the 18th century.[24]
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 disappearing 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.
As of September 2022, 1801 distinct species from the Kingdom
Fungi have been recorded on NBN Atlas Isle of Man.[30]
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.[31]
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.