Based on the interpretation of the bread wheat gene pool of van Slageren (1994), Aegilops tauschii Coss. is a secondary wild relative of bread wheat, Triticum aestivum L. ssp. aestivum, durum wheat, T. turgidum ssp. durum (Desf.) Husn., and a number of other cultivated wheats; including emmer wheat, T. turgidum ssp. dicoccon (Schrank) Thell., einkorn wheat, T. monococcum L. ssp. monococcum, spelt, T. aestivum ssp. spelta (L.) Thell., and sanduri wheat, T. timopheevii (Zhuk.) Zhuk. ssp. timopheevii (USDA, ARS, National Genetic Resources Program 2010).

European regional assessment: Endangered (EN)
EU 27 regional assessment: Not Evaluated (NE)

Aegilops tauschii is only extant in two areas in Europe which are both under a high threat of touristic and other infrastructure development that is causing a continuing decline in the area, extent and quality of habitat and correspondingly, the area of occupancy  (AOO) of the species. It occurs in small patches of only a few individuals in less than five locations and the overall AOO is less than 500 km². It is therefore regionally assessed as Endangered.

It does not occur within the EU 27.

Native to east Europe (Crimea and European Russia), western and middle Asia, the Caucasus, the Indian Subcontinent and China (USDA, ARS, National Genetic Resources Program 2010). Its presence as an introduced species has been reported from the USA and a number of European countries; including Croatia, France, Germany, Greece, Italy and the Netherlands (van Slageren 1994).

In Crimea, the species is found at only two small localities, one around Sudak (Fedorov 1974) and the other on the coast of the Azov Sea on the Kerczenskij Peninsula. The latter locality was documented in 1982 with a herbarium specimen; however, a search for Aegilops tauschii at this locality in 2009 was not successful (Diederichen et al. 2010). In the South European Russian Federation its distribution is limited to the Krasnodarski Krai region. Its overall area of occupancy (AOO) is less than 500 km².

In the Russian Federation, it is only present in small patches with a few individuals in each. According to Golubev (1996), the Crimean subpopulations are abundant; however, field surveys in 2009 confirmed that one of the Crimean subpopulations has gone extinct (Diederichen et al. 2010). The exact population size and trend of this species are unknown, but the area, extent and quality of the habitat are declining.

It is found on open rocky slopes, in gravel, on light sandy or, conversely, heavy clay soils of the plains (sometimes even slightly solemnized ones), on beaches, dry hills, and near roads (Chukhina and Antonov 2003–2009).

The populations in Crimea are very fragmented and under threat as they are near a city where development for tourism and recreational activities has led to a decline in the habitat. In Krasnodarski Krai, infrastructure development for olympic games and leisure activities are threatening the populations. Around Sochi, natural habitats are being destroyed by these activities. As this kind of infrastructure development is the main threat and taking place on a large scale, the number of locations can be defined as being five or below.

A secondary wild relative of and potential gene donor to bread and durum wheat, as well as a number of other cultivated wheats; including emmer, einkorn, spelt and sanduri. It is a dought-tolerant species (van Slageren 1994) and a possible gene source for pest and disease resistance (USDA, ARS, National Genetic Resources Program 2010). It has contributed traits to bread wheat for good baking qualities and winter hardiness and is a good quality fodder plant for spring and early summer (Chukhina and Antonov 2003–2009).

The genus Aegilops is listed in Annex I of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture as part of the wheat gene pool.

EURISCO reports 714 germplasm accessions of Aegilops tauschii held in European genebanks, 632 of which are reported to be of wild or weedy origin. Of the wild accessions, seven originate from within Europe: (Belgium (one), Bulgaria (one), Denmark (one), Germany (two), Portugal (one) and Sweden (one) (EURISCO Catalogue 2010). However, collections from Ukraine and South European Russia are not reported. Further research into the ex situ conservation status of European populations of this species is needed and collection and duplicated ex situ storage should be actioned as priority if necessary.

Active in situ conservation (including monitoring and appropriate management) at both European localities is needed.