RAUK - Archived Forum - ReptilesonoRailways

Well Mick

its jon (herpetologic2) again - I have found the railways to be prime reptile habitat - all four species were found in Hockley (Essex) around the station, adders were found at Rayleigh Station (Essex). Railway sleepers when they are piled up alongside the railway lines provide good basking areas and shelter. I once found two colonies of lizards alongside a railway within the actual sleepers where they had rotten holes - and several grass snakes in a short visit to an active line

The linear features such as road verges, seawalls and railway lines are all important in reptile conservation.

Jon

Yeh, Alan, some road banks & verges - especially in southern england & south wales - can be pretty good reptile habitat as well, & very often good also for orthoptera, my other main wildlife interest. Much prefer being able to maybe see some choo-choo's as well though, plus i like knowing that reptiles rarely ever run a risk of getting flattened by trains. They're rarely even bothered when trains whizz past them!

And yes, exactly Jon, prime reptile habitat. Some Slow-worms are thought to have penetrated back deep into central London by simply using the railways into the capital. I wouldn't fancy runnin' the gauntlet of all them rats though! On what you said about lineside disused wooden sleepers, just a few months back i saw an adult Vivip' with just its head sticking out of an old bolt hole of a discarded sleeper beside the mainline. The funny little chap was keepin' a firm eye on me & it would've made such a cute photo' if i'd only had a camera handy. I quickly realised he, or she wasn't alone either, there were about six others there, young & adults. I know some roadsides, & most definately coastal regions are important reptile habitats, but i'm not sure some realise just how very good railways often are as well for reptiles. A relatively modern invention which reptiles have really learnt to exploit the full potential of,...a positive from us!!    

does anyone know of a good place in portsmouth to find slow worms or grass snakes

Ambrose,

There is a forum policy not to divulge exact locations of herpetofauna, but I'd be tempted to try the Portsdown Hill area...in general.

Happy herping.

Hi Mick

As everyone seems to be confirming - railway tracksides do seem to be a reptile haven. Certainly my first experiences many years ago of Common lizards were on railway embankments. In recent years I found a very dense population of Common Lizards (around 450 per hectare) and Slowworms (around 150 per hectare) in an almost perfectly flat railside habitat. At least one of our motorways in the south carries a good population of both species - and some adders. And, of course, in Merseyside the railways are the main corridors between various colonies of Sand lizard. I think that these areas form naturally protected habitat with a lower proportion of un-natural predators such as cats, habitat destroyers such as people. Although the habitat can degrade there is usually so much of it that the lizards can move into good adjacent habitat - veyr much as they used to cope with the ephemeral nature of heath and dune before we destroyed most of it! 

And, of course, in Merseyside the railways are the main corridors between various colonies of Sand lizard. 

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Yep!, well pointed out. Found all that a detailed, great little read, Iowarth..Cheers! Certainly sounds like you're on the right tracks to me! 

Mick.

Oh Mick - how could you! <groans>.

Should have mentioned railways & reptiles go well for me too - not an anorak, sorry, train spotter but I AM a railway modeller so I haveta look at the real thing!