Tracking adders in Berkshire

This will be my second year doing adder surveys for BBOWT, so I’ll be roaming my local nature reserves in Berkshire to see how many I can find.

I’d wanted to see for them some time, but after several years of searching I’d only found a few adders by myself. They’re not exactly easy to track down, so I jumped at the chance to become a surveyor and get a few pointers from BBOWT.

The best time to see them is in March and April, when they can be found lying around in the sunshine. It’s always exciting to see such an exotic animal on our nature reserves. Unfortunately, though, adders get a lot of bad press.

Yes, they are venomous and should be treated with respect. But they are also shy, timid animals, who want to be left in peace.

I’ve now had over 100 adder sightings and have never known one to be aggressive. I find that if I stay a few metres back, they seem happy to ignore me and carry on basking. I’ve even had one yawn at me!

If they do get scared, they quickly hide under a bush. They only bite if stepped on or picked up, so the best advice is to stay on the path and keep dogs out of the heather.

Whilst doing one of my surveys, I met this adder (above) coming the other way. I backed off a couple of steps to make him feel comfortable, but he didn’t seem bothered. We watched each other for a few moments and I took this photo before he went on his way.

His black and white markings show that he’s a male, whereas the females (below) tend to be brown. It sounds easy enough, but their colours vary a lot and I’m finding it harder than I expected to tell boys and girls apart. Hopefully I’ll improve with practice.

I’ve also learned that every adder has unique markings on its head, a bit like a fingerprint. It’s possible to tell individuals apart, and this information can help to keep track of their numbers.

Adders like to return to their favourite basking areas again and again, so hopefully there’s a good chance I’ll find him again this year.

You never know what other wildlife you’ll see whilst you’re out surveying. I had no idea that adders were happy to share their sunbathing spots with grass snakes, but I’ve now seen this several times. I also see a lot of common lizards, which sometimes hide just inches from the footpath.

I’ve already learned a lot, and I look forward to starting again this year.

Alan Garnsworthy, BBOWT volunteer surveyor

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