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| Subspecies: | Unknown |
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| Est. World Population: | |
| CITES Status: | NOT LISTED |
| IUCN Status: | Least Concern |
| U.S. ESA Status: | NOT LISTED |
| Body Length: | |
| Tail Length: | |
| Shoulder Height: | |
| Weight: | |
| Top Speed: | |
| Jumping Ability: | (Horizontal) |
| Life Span: | in the Wild |
| Life Span: | in Captivity |
| Sexual Maturity: | (Females) |
| Sexual Maturity: | (Males) |
| Litter Size: | |
| Gestation Period: | |
Habitat:
This is a widespread and adaptable species present in coniferous, mixed and deciduous forests, groves, bushlands, meadows, arid areas, parks and gardens. It is usually in damp areas with dense vegetation, and large open areas are generally avoided. The species spawns and larval development takes place in still waters and slow-moving parts of rivers and streams. It is present in many modified habitats. Age at maturity and other life history traits vary enormously across the range of the species (Hemmelaar 1988; B. Schmidt pers. comm. February 2023). Annual survival rather than longevity would be a good descriptor of life history of the species (B. Schmidt per. comm. 2023).
Range:
In Europe, this species is present in most areas (including Norway, Sweden and Finland), although absent (as native) from the island of Ireland, western France and the Iberian Peninsula (Gasc et al. 1997, Arnold 2003, Garcia-Porta et al. 2012). It occurs between sea level to 3,000 m asl, however in northern portions of the range the species occurs at much lower elevations. Introduced regions are not mapped for this species.
Out of the European region, the range of this species extends as far east as Xinjiang (China), northern Kazakhstan, eastern Siberia, Iran (Baloutch and Kami 1995) and the Anatolia region of Türkiye (Özeti and Yilmaz 1994, Yilmaz and Kumlutas 1995, Baran et al. 2021).
Out of the European region, the range of this species extends as far east as Xinjiang (China), northern Kazakhstan, eastern Siberia, Iran (Baloutch and Kami 1995) and the Anatolia region of Türkiye (Özeti and Yilmaz 1994, Yilmaz and Kumlutas 1995, Baran et al. 2021).
Conservation:
Conservation Actions In-Place
This species is present in numerous protected areas, is listed in Appendix III of the Bern Convention and is protected by national and sub-national legislation in many countries. It is recorded on many national and sub-national Red Data books and lists. It is considered Vulnerable in Italy (Rondinini et al. 2022), Switzerland (Schmidt and Zumbach 2005), Czech Republic (Chobot and Něměc 2017) and Slovenia (Anonymous 2010), NT in Great Britain (Foster et al. 2021), Austria (Gollmann 2007), Albania (Anonymous 2013), Romania (Botnariuc and Tatole 2005). In parts of this species range, mitigation measures to reduce road kill have been established (Schmidt et al. 2020). There have been 34 EC-funded LIFE projects targeting the species or its habitats. Successful conservation action is possible for this species (Moor et al. 2022).
Research Needed
Population monitoring is required, as well as research to understand the cause of declines observed in this species across its range. Water management should target the restoration of water bodies, serving as breeding habitats for the species throughout its range, but especially within the EU Natura2000 network (B. Halpern pers. comm. October 2022).
Detected mass mortality locations should be reported and relevant road managers should be requested to find technical solutions to avoid future mortality events (B. Halpern pers. comm. October 2022).
This species is present in numerous protected areas, is listed in Appendix III of the Bern Convention and is protected by national and sub-national legislation in many countries. It is recorded on many national and sub-national Red Data books and lists. It is considered Vulnerable in Italy (Rondinini et al. 2022), Switzerland (Schmidt and Zumbach 2005), Czech Republic (Chobot and Něměc 2017) and Slovenia (Anonymous 2010), NT in Great Britain (Foster et al. 2021), Austria (Gollmann 2007), Albania (Anonymous 2013), Romania (Botnariuc and Tatole 2005). In parts of this species range, mitigation measures to reduce road kill have been established (Schmidt et al. 2020). There have been 34 EC-funded LIFE projects targeting the species or its habitats. Successful conservation action is possible for this species (Moor et al. 2022).
Research Needed
Population monitoring is required, as well as research to understand the cause of declines observed in this species across its range. Water management should target the restoration of water bodies, serving as breeding habitats for the species throughout its range, but especially within the EU Natura2000 network (B. Halpern pers. comm. October 2022).
Detected mass mortality locations should be reported and relevant road managers should be requested to find technical solutions to avoid future mortality events (B. Halpern pers. comm. October 2022).