~ Paddon, Quantock Landscape Partnership Scheme Wildlife Officer
In England there are only seven native species of reptiles: three species of lizard and four species of snakes. Each species is protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (as amended) meaning it is illegal to knowingly kill, injure or sell any of these reptiles. Adders are the most famous and dangerous reptile in the UK, due to the fact they are one of the only venomous creatures in the country. However, adder bites are rarely fatal, there have only been 14 deaths in the last 150 years.
Despite the misconceptions about them, adders are one of the most captivating English animals. If you can find them, they’re quite easy to identify. They have vibrant red eyes and a distinctive zig zag pattern; the males are a striking grey and black colouration which can be seen here, while the females (in the picture above) are shades of brown.
Some sources estimate that a substantial portion of their population has disappeared. However, due to their illusive nature and annual hibernation it’s extremely difficult to get an accurate estimate of their population. Adders hibernate between October and March and are most active in spring (March to May) making it the only time ecological surveys can be done with any real success. Before 2011 only a few dozen surveys for adders had been carried out, with even fewer snakes having been found. So we knew the reptiles were here, but how do you help something those whereabouts have only been recorded a few times since the turn of the century?
Well, that’s where the Quantock Landscape Partnership Scheme and the Reptile and Amphibians Group of Somerset (RAGS) comes in! After searching through the SERC files (Somerset Environmental Records Centre) we identified several locations where adders had been found and several more where they were likely to be, 12 locations in total.
Across these 12 sites the QLPS and our dedicated volunteers carried out 45 surveys. Five of the locations we only visited once as there was no evidence adders were present on these sites. This does not mean there weren’t adders in those locations, just that they weren’t located at that time.
Over the past few years QLPS staff and volunteers have spent around 210 hours surveying for adders. Other committed local community groups donated over 80 hours of their time to finding these beautiful animals.
In 2022 and 2023 in association with RAGS we hosted two beginners training sessions. These sessions focused on reptile and adder survey, looking at their ecology and where to find them. More than fifty people attended the training, raising awareness for adders, and with participants gaining ecological surveying skills.
The results of all of these surveys from the QLPS and citizen science programme run by Friends of the Quantocks found 30 adders. 2 of these were hard to sex, due to the fact that the adders were ‘melanised’ meaning they are black in colouration making it hard to gender them via colouration. The remaining twenty-eight were equally split 14 male/14 female. Additionally, an adder’s shed skin was found. It’s hard to tell by these results if the adder population is going strong but there are things we can do to help.
While this may look like a pile of rubble it’s actually a hibernaculum (underground chamber for reptiles to hibernate in over winter). Just this year, two of the structures have been constructed in the north and south of the hills. Building them was a combined effort between the QLPS, the National Landscape rangers, volunteers and Young Somerset.
The Quantock Landscape Partnership Scheme comes to a close in 2025 however Friends of the Quantocks have agreed to take over the ongoing adder survey work with some fresh training planned for Spring 2025 with surveys over the following months.
If you are interested in taking part in the training or surveys in the coming year, then contact Friends of the Quantocks about joining their adder surveying group. If you spot an adder whilst out and about on the Quantocks, please take a picture and log your sighting via iNaturalist. It will then be added to the Quantock Wildlife Watch. If you don’t “do apps” then you can always post a pic on the Facebook group or send via email to [email protected].
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