| Reptile Conservation in the UK |
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| Written by Fred Holmes |
 The UK has lost most of its heathland in the last 100 years or so, up to 90% in fact. Roads, housing estates, arson and so on have all contributed its decline. Of course with that decline in habitat comes a decline in the animals living in it.   Sand lizards once abundant on Chobham Common are now extinct. The same goes for the smooth snake and with the advent of global warming many believe the south is becoming too hot for common lizards now more scarce than in previous years.I volunteer for ARC (Amphibian and Reptile Conservation) http://www.arc-trust.org/ and we actively protect heathland during the winter months when the animals are hibernating.  Heathland conservation is not a particularly complex task and we basically remove encroaching scrub and invasive trees either by hand or chainsaw and in extreme cases big mechanical diggers etc.Spotting and photographing reptiles in the summer months gives me and my family hours of fun and relaxation and I want to ensure that these wonderful and exotic members of our local fauna will be there in years to come for my grandchildren and their children to enjoy. Seeing a male sand lizard basking on a Surrey heath replete with handsome luminous green overcoat is one of the most colourful and attractive features of our British landscape with few animals to rival its showy flamboyance. Surrey Herald article : Caretaker takes five snakes to school. |
| Last Updated on Friday, 13 November 2009 11:59 |