Common
lizard, viviparous lizard
Lacerta vivipara
Common lizards have the ability to shed their tails in
order to fool predators when threatened.
Statistics
Common lizards can grow to 18cm in length, although on average
they are between 10 and 16cm long.
Physical Description
Common lizards (resident on our site) have long bodies and
short legs. They have tough coarse scales which range from
grey, brown, bronze or green on the back, and males are
generally darker,also smaller than females. They have a
series of white spots down the flanks, which fuse to form
a line, and a black line along the back. Common lizards
also have numerous black spots scattered over the body.
Males have orange/yellow bellies with black spots and females
have cream/white bellies. The log piles on the site are
the main place to view the lizards, but they can be difficult
to see so be patient.
Distribution
Common lizards range across the United kingdom but are mainly
situated in southern areas. They are also the only reptile
found in Ireland.
Habitat
They are found in a range of habitats , which include woodland,
marshes and hedgerows. However sites like ours such as disused
allotment sites or Churchyards usually provide the best
habitats. The next best site for observation near Acton
wildlife is the Newton Rd allotment site Sudbury.
Behaviour
Common lizards like to bask during the day (but prefer not
to lay in the intense heat of midday) they go to forage
for food when their body temperature reaches 30 degrees
Celsius. Lizards are good swimmers and will dive underwater
when threatened. At night, they will shelter beneath logs,
stones and metal sheets. Common lizards hibernate from October
to March. They usually hibernate ingroups, and sometimes
emerge for a brief time during warm spells.
Diet
Common lizards hunt insects, spiders, snails and earthworms.
They stun their prey by shaking it, and then swallow it
whole.
Reproduction
The young develop inside the females body over a 3 month
period within special egg membranes, which they usually
break out of as she gives birth. However some remain inside
the egg membrane for a few days before breaking out (using
their heads rather than an egg-tooth to rupture the membrane).
Lizards are born in litters of 3-12 and emerge from June
to September, after which time the mother shows no parental
care. The young will feed almost independently from birth
and quickly disperse. Males become sexually mature around
2 years and females around 3 years of age. Backto
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Slowworms
Behaviour and Ecology
Slow Worms are very seldom seen during
daylight because they like to shelter under logs, stones
or other objects. They emerge from these at dusk to search
for slugs, worms, spiders and various insects to feed on.
The Slow Worm ( or the legless lizard)
is ovo-viviparous, which means that the eggs hatch either
as they are laid or some minutes later. The new born average
litter is of of 6-12, they become independent straight away
and are miniature versions of their parents just 6.5-9 cm
in length.Within two years they can grow to 21-23 cm in
length. With at least one captive individual living beyond
50 years of age, wild individuals could possibly live for
20 years of more.
Identification
An adult Slow Worm is typically about
30cm in length, with a uniform cylindrical body –
i.e. without the narrowing behind the head that gives snakes
their characteristic ‘neck’. Remember the slow
worm is not a snake,but a lizard it has visible eyelids
that blink regularly and smooth, shiny scales that display
a metallic appearance. It is the extreme smoothness of the
scales that results in the ‘highly polished’
appearance. It's overall body colour is a shiny grey-brown,
usually with thin longitudinal stripes of a darker colour.
The exact appearance may vary from one individual to another
but older males usually sport a series of small spots, blue
in colour. Back
Grass
snake
Description
There is a small population of Grass
snake on our site. It is the largest snake in the United
kingdom, the males reaching up to 90cm (3 feet) in size.
Mature females can be up to 150cm (5 feet) long, but it
is rare for females to reach this size. Their colour is
variable and grass snakes are usually a shade of olive green,
but they can also be brown and grey. Their bodies bear fine
black vertical bars and/or spots running along their sides.
It has a characteristic orange, yellow or white collar round
the neck.
Ecology
Grass snakes are found in a variety of habitats throughout
the country but they tend to prefer habitats associated
with water, such as ditch lines (our site has ditch lines
running beside it's hedges) where they feed on amphibians(frogs
have been seen on our site) and fish. Grass snakes start
to emerge from hibernation in March and April and mating
soon occurs. The grass snake is the only native snake to
lay eggs. This takes place in June/July in piles of vegetation,
manure and compost heaps where the warmth from decomposition
helps to incubate the 10 - 40 eggs laid. We have created
various compost piles on the site to try to increase the
population. Several females will share the same egg-laying
site and the young snakes hatch in August/September. It
is worth mentioning that Grass snakes are completely harmless
to humans. They can often be viewed by lifting up the tins
on our site but if disturbed or handled they can bite and
exude a nasty-smelling secretion from their anal gland so
look but be cautious if your squeamish.
Adders
There are no Adders on our site or in our part of Suffolk,
that we know of, but we are surveying all over Suffolk for
their presence. Please leave a message if you see one as
George Millins and Alan Sawyer are the local surveyers.
A useful link for adders, is for a site based in the Cotswalds,
called Adders2.
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