London Grass Snakes - UPDATE

[Jürgen Gebhart]

Very nice Ilian! The close up of the Juvenil is great!
The interesting thing is, that all three have a brown ground color.

[Mario Schweiger]

Yes, there should be only helvetica!
And the juvenile shown looks like this ssp.
elongated black spot on the neck.
Sidebars and not spots.

Mario

[Tony Palmer]

Nice pictures Ilian!!
Helvetica in the UK come in two different shades of brown and blue/grey
From my own personal observations those found on alkaline soils tend to be brown and those on acidic soils tend to be blue/grey interestingly though all young Helvetica when they are first born are blue/grey and the colour can change after the first year.
Several years ago I rescued two batches of eggs from a compost heap that was going to be destroyed, 38 of them hatched and all were blue/grey despite the adult population been brown.
Reduced collars in adult females is common but in some localised populations like those in London and a few isolated populations around the country they can lose the collar completely I’m not sure why that is though!

A blue/grey male I photographed last year.


And a brown female from this year, my camera hasn’t picked up on the colour as well as Ilians camera has.


Cheers,
Tony

[Ilian Velikov]

Thanks again for your nice and useful comments! Your photos are very nice,too Tony! I don't have any actual info of the N.natrix distribution in London but I don't think the one from the area I visit is studied! It would be nice to do some research especially when the area is threatened by development and building which means habitat loss for the snakes. I guess they could be at least relocated if the construction work can't be stoped!

[Tony Palmer]

Hi Ilian, I’m not sure what you could do to protect that site! Grass snakes don’t have full protection in the UK.
When the food source runs out the grass snakes will simply move on and hopefully find new hunting grounds.
Its no coincidence that Natrix and its sub-species is the most widespread snake in Europe they can be very mobile following inland waterways and travelling long distances over land and don’t suffer as bad as other reptiles do when specific types of habitat restrict movement.
Grass snakes can pop up anywhere in London from small garden ponds to Canals Rivers and lakes were they might be a ready supply of frogs and toads although the loss of suitable breeding grounds for frogs and toads is having a big impact on grass snake numbers.

[Ilian Velikov]

Hi Ilian, I’m not sure what you could do to protect that site! Grass snakes don’t have full protection in the UK.

Yes, I know but I think I may inform the London Essex and Hertfordshire Amphibian and Reptile Trust (LEHART) or some other institutions for this population, so at least they know the snakes are there! It might be considered if construction work starts. I know of some cases that Slow Worms and Grass Snakes have been relocated due to construction works over their original habitats. There are also some companys that create habitats for various animals (including reptiles & amphibians) if there is a lack of suitable once for relocation.

[Liam Russell]

What should happen is that the college or the construction company should hire a reputable ecological consultant who will survey for reptiles and produce a mitigation strategy which may entail moving them from the site if necessary. If they are doing it properly they will create of enhance habitat on a suitable receptor site nearby in advance of this happening. All reptiles are Biodiversity Action Plan species these days which means they must be considered when planning permission is granted. If the site has planning permission there should be a reptile survey report/mitigation stratgey somewhere which should be online. That's what should happen anyway...

As Tony says, it's not uncommon for older female grass snakes to lose their yellow collars.

[Ilian Velikov]

Thanks for explaining how things should be done,Liam! So basicly, I can't do anything about it? It all depends on the construction company and if they are willing to hire an ecological consultant?

[Liam Russell]

If a planning application has been made, details should be online somewhere. If you email me some details about the site I can have look.

[Ilian Velikov]

I contacted the London Essex and Hertfordshire Amphibian and Reptile Trust (LEHART) and it turns out that I've found one of London's best Grass snake populations! I didn't really expect that! It is within a National Nature Reserve and Will Atkins assured me that the trust is in the heart of the protests to try to stop the building!