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No adult females this year...: |
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-LAF Senior Member Joined: 03 Apr 2003 No. of posts: 317  View other posts by -LAF |
Posted: 06 Apr 2004 Last march I found all of the adult female adders I'm familiar with at a central Lincolnshire site had emerged from hibernation looking in very good condition. Of those snakes, all the ones I found again in August were gravid. This March I found precisely NO large adult females! My familiar snakes were no where to be seen, although a couple of the larger males were around. In fact, in one day (March 19th) I found 9 males but only one female. The female in question looked to just into breeding size and had one small male coiled with her. So my question is simple, do female adders in a population often all reproduce on the same year and do they not hang around breeding/hibernacula sites if they have bred the previous season? Or was I still a little early in the year so females just hadn't emerged there yet? My previous years visit had been the (I think - I should take nore care to log this) second week of April. Cheers, Lee. Lee Fairclough |
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Tony Phelps Forum Specialist Joined: 09 Mar 2003 No. of posts: 575 View other posts by Tony Phelps |
Posted: 06 Apr 2004 Hi Lee, Good to talk about something else. The erratic reproductive cycle in female adders means that its a bit of a lottery and numbers actually breeding in any on year will be variable. For example, at Norden last year in one subpopulation two females bred, this year there are nine with well advaced ova, and these are the obvious females on the surface. The non-breeders will disperse quite early and tend to be quite secretive anyway. I caught up with one at Hartland ysterday, (in a safe area!!) that had a nice bulge, vole whatever, and this girl last bred in 2002. I'm working on my adder reproductive paper right now, (without too many furher distractions I hope). Getting back to Hartland. Twenty metres in from the cleared area is a large tin and there were five males, two on top and three underneath. This tin usually reveals one or two and the others may be survivors from the disturbed areas. I will look again tomorrow and catch em up and get Id's then I will know. Tony |
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Geoff Simpson Member Joined: 11 Feb 2004 No. of posts: 12 View other posts by Geoff Simpson |
Posted: 06 Apr 2004 The main Derbyshire site has been badly degraded by the burning once again of the heather moorland and the drainage of a large expanse of water. Adjacent to the water I would normally see 6 to 10 adders basking but in 2003 NIL and so far in 2004 NIL. That said I did find 3 males and 2 females elsewhere on the moor but all about 200 metres apart. This year is going to be a difficult year I fear for the population of adders here in Derbyshire I feel. Which is a shame as only 10 months ago I invited the peak District NP ecologist to join me for a day and help outline the prime adder sites. Totally ignoring my comments they have degraded the area. When will they ever learn - I don't like to say this but I fear there are to many pen pushers and not enough knowledge where it really matters on the ground. Geoff www.geoffsimpson.co.uk |
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Tony Phelps Forum Specialist Joined: 09 Mar 2003 No. of posts: 575 View other posts by Tony Phelps |
Posted: 07 Apr 2004 Hi Geoff, I think you will find that in many cases there is enough knowledge, but the powers that be seem to not have the will or inclination to tap into it. Tony |
- No adult females this year... |