Where have all the adders gone?

[Paul in the woods]

Around our house we've got grass snakes, slowworms and loads of common lizards. There's always been a few pheasants about but luckily places round here don't release that many.

 

I own another patch of land that boarders an area that was covered in adders a few years ago. I've not looked for them this year which is a shame as I never see pheasants down there. I did find a large grass snake skeleton than had been dropped by something.

 

I would also think the weather would have an impact. Down here it was a very mild winter and I wonder how that would affect the adders' hibernation.

[Silverhooker]

We have a massive shoot nearby that releases thousands of pheasants, and the local raptor and corvid population has grown exponetially with an associated decline in the native song birds, local RSPB guy told me this. The shoot provides employment for around 8 people all year round and loads more casual in the season but it isn't a positive thing for the countryside.

[Baldbloke]

I don't think I've seen a grass snake for over 20 years. Anyone else see them regularly?

Never seen a grass snake up in Angus, but seen plenty of Adders up in the Angus hills. A friend’s kids used to play a game where they competed to see how many they could capture and put in an overturned concrete drainage rings. I believe they managed 22 in one spring morning, including one they placed in the footwell of my car. I felt it brush against my leg as I drove away. Got out of the car in a very convoluted posture. [emoji3]

I lived in Kent for three years and spent most of my time in the woods hunting rabbits with an air rifle. I remember seeing a snake slither under a log and realising it was a Grass snake, lifted the log and grabbed it only to get bitten between the thumb and index finger in the webbed bit. Thing wouldn’t release for what seemed ages.

[DuncanH]

I usually see 3 or 4 adders per year whilst at work in Northumberland. One colleague sees them more often as they prefer the sites he works on. Numbers have been fairly constant over the last 5 years or so
One of my favourite jobs a few years back was vegetation clearance on road repair job through a SSSI where there were known to be adders and slow worms. We had to move the 8 or 9 we found in to prepared hibernacula. 

No grass snakes up here unfortunately

[Guest Gimlet]

Could be too dry. Grass snakes prefer to live near a water source. I spent ages watching one swimming in a local chalk stream once. It was astonishing how long it stayed submerged. I thought is was a eel at first, until it climbed out of the water and slipped off through the grass.

[IronMike]

Sounds to me like the little things have generally adder nuff.

 

I’ll fetch my coat...... ?

[Matthew Storrs]

43 minutes ago, IronMike said:

Sounds to me like the little things have generally adder nuff.

 

I’ll fetch my coat...... ?

There certainly doesn’t seem to be a SERPless of them....

[the village idiot]

We're probably just not addering their numbers up properly.

 

It's an easy enough missnake to make.

[Baldbloke]

Could be too dry. Grass snakes prefer to live near a water source. I spent ages watching one swimming in a local chalk stream once. It was astonishing how long it stayed submerged. I thought is was a eel at first, until it climbed out of the water and slipped off through the grass.

Presumably hunting? What would they be after? Water voles?

[Bolt]

2 hours ago, the village idiot said:

We're probably just not addering their numbers up properly.

 

It's an easy enough missnake to make.

The first one was bad enough,

 

... but the the second?? 

 

Surely that's enough to viper smile off anyones face.

Edited November 11, 2019 by Bolt