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As a herpetologist I was fascinated by this story.
I�d love something like that in my garden.
a) Grass snakes always have yellow blotches at the side of the head/neck (they can be whitish, orangish - but are always there.)
They are �famous� for playing dead - usually upside down, with the tongue lolling out of it�s mouth.
They very rarely bite (harmless if they do). After catching (& releasing) thousands of them years ago I have never heard of anyone being bitten.
They are commonly called �water� snakes, & tend to live near water & mainly feed on �water� type prey.
That precludes them from my present garden.
b) Slow worms (lizards) can be lots of colours, mainly bronzy with stripes,,,, I�ve seen them from black to a very pale beige colour. Never bite.
Eat slugs etc. A couple of these could live happily in my garden !
c) Adders (viper) almost always has zigzag pattern along it�s body. These are venomous and can bite readily if handled.
Quiet rare in the snake world, the male/female patterns differ slightly.
Frequently seen in black as well as white and all colour in between.
Their eyes have a slit like pupil.
d) Smooth snake. similar in appearance to the grass snake, but no blotches on head/neck. Very rare & protected
None of these creatures are slimy or wet. They all need heat to keep their metabolism going - hence compost heaps.
TWOSHEDS: They wouldn't hear a bell.
I�d love something like that in my garden.
a) Grass snakes always have yellow blotches at the side of the head/neck (they can be whitish, orangish - but are always there.)
They are �famous� for playing dead - usually upside down, with the tongue lolling out of it�s mouth.
They very rarely bite (harmless if they do). After catching (& releasing) thousands of them years ago I have never heard of anyone being bitten.
They are commonly called �water� snakes, & tend to live near water & mainly feed on �water� type prey.
That precludes them from my present garden.
b) Slow worms (lizards) can be lots of colours, mainly bronzy with stripes,,,, I�ve seen them from black to a very pale beige colour. Never bite.
Eat slugs etc. A couple of these could live happily in my garden !
c) Adders (viper) almost always has zigzag pattern along it�s body. These are venomous and can bite readily if handled.
Quiet rare in the snake world, the male/female patterns differ slightly.
Frequently seen in black as well as white and all colour in between.
Their eyes have a slit like pupil.
d) Smooth snake. similar in appearance to the grass snake, but no blotches on head/neck. Very rare & protected
None of these creatures are slimy or wet. They all need heat to keep their metabolism going - hence compost heaps.
TWOSHEDS: They wouldn't hear a bell.
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