European regional assessment: Least Concern (LC)
EU 27 regional assessment: Least Concern (LC)

This species is widespread across the European region, and is assessed as Least Concern for both Europe and for the EU 27 member states in view of its wide distribution, presumed large population, and because it is unlikely to be declining fast enough to qualify for listing in a threatened category.

In the European region, this species is found in central and eastern Europe ranging from Denmark, southern Sweden and northern Germany eastwards to the Ural Mountains of Russia, southwards to the Danube floodplain and along the lowlands of the Morava River and its tributaries in Serbia, and to Turkish Thrace. It has been introduced to the United Kingdom (one colony in Surrey), to mainland France (not mapped), and Crimea (Ukraine, not mapped). It is a lowland species that occurs from sea level up to a maximum of 730 m asl (in western Bohemia). The extent of occurrence (EOO) in the EU 27 region is 1,577,192 km².

Out of the European region, the range of this species extends to the northern slopes of the Caucasus Mountains, western parts of Anatolian Türkiye (around Adapazari), western Kazakhstan and the Trans-Ural part of Russia (Chelyabinskaya oblast).

This species remains fairly abundant over much of its range (for example it is extremely common to the north and west of the Danube floodplain where it has benefited from increased irrigation), although many northern populations have declined (e.g., in Poland and Germany). The subpopulations of this species in both Denmark and Sweden are low. Individual subpopulations of this species can show significant fluctuations in numbers. There are no recent records from Greece, but its range in this country has not been surveyed for many years. The species is common in parts of European Russia, Ukraine and Moldova, and while it is unlikely to be declining on this territory in general, many local subpopulations are declining. The overall European population trend is suspected to be declining, but not at a significant level at present.

Within Europe this species is associated with lowland areas of marshy or grassy wetlands, often along river valleys, with small, shallow, often-temporary lakes and ponds. In the former Soviet Union it has been reported from steppe, forest steppe, broad-leaved and mixed leafed coniferous forests, but it also inhabits open landscapes, using drainage channels as pathways for dispersal. At the southeastern margin of its distribution, the species lives in permanent freshwater bodies in river valleys surrounded by an arid saline landscape (solonetz-solonchak complex). It is primarily an aquatic animal living in shallow (less than 50-70 cm depth) stagnant lakes, ponds, pools, swamps, peat bogs, ditches, flooded rice fields and quarries. It may occasionally be found in semi-flowing waters: springs, irrigation channels, rivers and stream pools and the water must generally be clear (for example in the Carpathian region, B. bombina lives in wetlands with clearer water than the congeneric Bombina variegata); however, near the southern margin of the range (such as southeastern Ukraine and the Krasnodar region of South European Russia, out of the Pan Europe assessment region) the species often occurs in waters that have been polluted with industrial and agricultural chemicals such as settling and sedimentation reservoirs, rice fields, polluted ponds in rural and urban areas. The species breeds by larval development in pools with a good growth of sub-aquatic vegetation. Hybrid subpopulations of this species with B. variegata have been recorded (Vörös et al. 2006).

In western and northern Europe the species is threatened by the loss of habitat through modernisation of agricultural methods, most significantly the drainage and/or pollution of suitable wetland areas. Recent declines in northwestern Europe might also be related to climate change. In the Balkans it is threatened by urban development and agricultural development. Within the former Soviet Union destruction of wetlands is also the most serious threat, although industrial pollution and recreational activities also impact populations. Additional localized threats to this species include mortality on roads, entrapment in open wells with vertical walls, hybridisation and replacement by Bombina variegata and collection for the pet trade. However, at a global scale this species is not significantly threatened.

The species is collected for the ornamental/pet trade.

This species is listed on Appendix II of the Bern Convention and on Annexes II and IV of the EU Natural Habitats Directive. It is protected by national legislation in many countries, occurs in many protected areas, and is listed in many national and sub-national Red Data books and lists: Endangered in Czech Republic (Chobot and Něměc 2017), Slovenia (Anonymous 2010), Greece (Legakis and Maragou 2009), Vulnerable in Austria (Gollman 2007), Near Threaten in Croatia (Jelić et al. 2012) and Romania (Botnariuc and Tatole 2005), etc. This species has been successfully reintroduced to some sites in Sweden (Arnold, 2002), as of 2008 there are 10,000 adults in 3,000 breeding ponds. In other parts of this species range, mitigation measures to reduce road kill have been established. There were 71 EC-funded LIFE-projects targeting the species or its habitats: https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/life/publicWebsite/search/get?basicSearchText=bombina+bombina