Smooth Snake – Species Guide
Smooth snakes (Coronella austriaca) are rare, secretive, well camouflaged and unlikely to be encountered, existing as they do only in several locations in the south of England. Identification Smooth snakes are smaller than our other native snakes (adders and grass … Read More
Slow Worm – Species Guide
Often mistaken for a snake, our most commonly encountered reptile is in fact a lizard, the slow worm (Anguis fragilis). Snakes do not have eye lids, instead their eyes are covered in a transparent scale. Slow worms have eye lids … Read More
Common Lizard – Species Guide
The common lizard (Zootoca vivipara) is the most common of the UK’s three native lizards. It is often seen quickly scuttling away from human disturbance in dry, open habitats such as heaths. Identification If you see a lizard in the … Read More
Grass Snake – Species Guide
Identification The Grass Snake (Natrix helvetica) is Britain’s longest snake, with large females sometimes reaching up to 1.5m in length! Grass snakes are usually olive green with black bars along the flanks and small black dots on the dorsal side. … Read More
Sand Lizard – Species Guide
The sand lizard (Lacerta agilis) is one of the UK’s three native lizards. It can be found only on a handful of sites, mainly in the south of England. They are incredibly well camouflaged and difficult to spot. If you … Read More
The Adder- Species Guide
Introduction and Identification The Common Adder (Vipera berus) is a member of the Viperinae family and is Britain’s only venomous reptile. They are relatively short and fat compared with our other common snake, the grass snake (Natrix helvetica), growing up … Read More