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ZEISS DTI thermal imaging cameras. For more discoveries at night, and during the day.

Seeing all Six Reptiles (1 Viewer)

RockyRacoon

RockyRacoon

Well-known member
Just interested to know where the best sites are to see all six species of Reptile are? Arne and Hartland Moor are two sites I found whilst searching, but I don't know how reliable the sites are, so can anyone tell me where the best most reliable site is?
 
Jake . said:
Just interested to know where the best sites are to see all six species of Reptile are? Arne and Hartland Moor are two sites I found whilst searching, but I don't know how reliable the sites are, so can anyone tell me where the best most reliable site is?
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I would say Studland beach near Poole in Dorset. The only one I have not found there is the Slow worm, although they are very common around there. If you did go, just beware that it is also a nudist beach. Many is the time I have chased a lizard over the top of a dune and got a very good veiw of a snake I was not expecting
 
Cheers stronzo, perhaps if I go in March when they (the reptiles!) are just coming out of hibernation then I should be alright!
 
Hi Jake,
I believe that all six native British reptile species (not including marine turtles or alien species such as Red-eared Terrapin or Montpellier Snake) can also be seen at Thursley Common in Surrey, though, when I visited, the only one that I saw were lots of Common Lizards...which is the only native reptile in Ireland, and the only one that I had already seen!
Regards,
Harry
 
Harry Hussey said:
Hi Jake,
I believe that all six native British reptile species (not including marine turtles or alien species such as Red-eared Terrapin or Montpellier Snake) can also be seen at Thursley Common in Surrey, though, when I visited, the only one that I saw were lots of Common Lizards...which is the only native reptile in Ireland, and the only one that I had already seen!
Regards,
Harry
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The standard quiz question answer is 'Devon' in regards to which county can all British reptiles be seen.
 
actually dorset is the only county where all six species of reptile can be seen. you can also find all species of native amphibians there too, barring the green frog.
 
Hartland would be my suggestion too, but most of the Isle of Purbeck sites have good potential. You'll have to wait until April to stand much chance of seeing a smooth snake though, they wake up in the spring like I do in the mornings |=o|

Best bet for smoothies is early morning June onwards.

5 species days are quite easy in that area but 6 requires just a little bit of luck as well.

BTW, Harry, you mentioned the montpellier snake as an alien species here, was this just an example of a non-native or have you actually heard of these turning up?

Regards, Lee.
 
PS: As for counties, Dorset is top of the list but Hampshire and Surrey are 6 species counties too, and Somerset and Wiltshire are hugely probable. Devon is a possibility if smoothies still exist there somewhere.
 
jacana said:
i thought the smooth snake was confined to dorset and hampshire?
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That's the textbook version and these counties are definately the strongholds. The reality is that even if the Surrey population DID go extinct (which was never proven) reintroductions have occured there since.

As for Wiltshire, well let's say that tracts of heath and forest known to contain smooth snakes span the county boundries between Wilts. and Hamps and snakes don't read maps. Ditto with sandies there, though these are more likely to be the absentee.

I'm not sure off the top of my head whether there are recent records for Somerset, but both Somerset and Devon have viable habitat and are being looked at. Devon of course has had Sand lizards reintroduced there giving the full six if Smoothies are, in fact, present.

Smoothies are generally secretive and somewhat cryptic. I wouldn't fall of my chair if they turned up in any southern county, but wherever they are, you can bet there won't be many.

Lee.
 
Last edited:
Does anyone know what the latest is on the green lizard colony found somewhere in Dorset? I remember reading a couple of years ago that this species is possibly a native.

Wall lizards are also possibly native so arguably there are 8 species to find
 
I thought the case was arguable for Wall Lizard but would be surprised if Green Lizard was native since the Hippos died out. I would go and see them if I knew where they were, all the same - I enjoyed Wall Lizard last year in Dorset.

On latest information I don't think you can discount Leatherback Turtle, it seems they come here deliberately to feed on jellyfish. You can't exclude them just because they are difficult to catch up with!

I was interested to hear mention of Montpellier Snake. I thought the alien snakes were Aesculapian around Colwyn Bay Zoo, descended from an escaped pregnant female. Not the same species under a different name are they?
 
The info on wall lizards suggests they're not native either. They do too well when introduced no to be ubiquitous if they had been native. Also, I am pretty sure that small scale DNA analysis has been done that sits our wall lizards firmly into the various european genotypes - our colonies of wall lizards have many oigins.

There is still a quite healthy population of western green lizards, Lacerta bilineata, in Dorset. Other introductions of green lizard seem to have gone extinct. There is anecdotal evidence to suggest that they may once have been found in North Kent, but it would seem far more likely that this was due to the former presence of (and confusion with) sand lizards there, perhaps of a slightly different colour or morphology to the more typical British races.

If you want a seventh native species, the best candidate at the moment looks to be Emys... but that's a whole other story.

I am currently in the process of thoroughly overhauling my British Reptiles Site, which will give far more info on non-native species. It'll be done by the end of the month at the latest.

Lee.
 
John Dixon said:
I was interested to hear mention of Montpellier Snake. I thought the alien snakes were Aesculapian around Colwyn Bay Zoo, descended from an escaped pregnant female. Not the same species under a different name are they?
Click to expand...

That was my understanding too. Have got most of the marine turtles but leatherbacks are a real pain to find. An aquaintance of mine saw one on her check out dive for which she has not been forgiven
 
I checked my notebooks overnight and found I had seen Smooth Snake basking in Dorset on 29 March (well photographed so there is no doubt) in case anyone is seeking earliest dates for planning purposes.
 
there are no reptiles in our area of Shropshire at all not even slowworms or grass snakes. but we have all native amphibians apart from natterjack and green frog... go figure
 
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