Adder Cadabra!! Wildwood’s Adders disappear for the winter

As the cold nights approach some of the UK’s native species look forward to hibernation, sleeping through the winter freeze and emerging again in the summer time. At the Wildwood Trust, two years of hard work will end this year as they wait with bated breath to see if their baby adders will be able to survive the cold.

Born at the Park in 2007, 12 adders have been hand reared by a dedicated keeper team. This is the first time that they will leave the warmth of their indoor enclosure where they have lived in for the last 25 months. “We've built them a hibernation box”, explained their keeper, Ali Bennett, “It’s full of straw and dead leaves to keep them warm and safe from the weather.”

This box has been placed inside Wildwood’s newly renovated Adder enclosure. “We've taken every precaution we can take to make them as ready as they can possibly be,” commented Paul Wirdnam Head Keeper at Wildwood Trust, “We've feed them up and given them a natural dry habitat to hibernate in, so now its fingers crossed and hope for the best.”

The new enclosure has been specially designed with a range of features that will ensure a frost free winter for the adders. Leaf litter, dead grass and logs have been used to create a natural underground kingdom of self draining tunnels that will keep the adders warm and dry whatever the weather. On top of this natural habitat the man made hibernation box has been placed so that the adders can choose where they want to spend the winter.

Adders are just one of the huge range of British animals that can be seen at the Wildwood Discovery Park as well, for more information visit the website at www.wildwoodtrust.org or telephone 0871 782 0087.

Wildwood is an ideal day out for all the family where you can come 'nose to nose' with British Wildlife. Wildwood offers its members and visitors a truly inspirational way to learn about the natural history of Britain by actually seeing the wildlife that once lived here, like the wolf, beaver, red squirrel, wild boar and many more.

Wildwood is situated close to Canterbury, just off the A291 between Herne Bay and Canterbury. For more information visit our website at www.wildwoodtrust.org or telephone 0871 782 0081.

More Facts about Adder breeding at Wildwood:

Wildwood is unique in the country in its ability to successfully breed many of the UK ’s endangered native species. These adders are the only ones in the country who have been trained from birth to be fed by tongs. This enables the keepers to keep a detailed record of how much the animal has eaten and if it will be enough to face the long cold winter ahead. It is vital that organisations like Wildwood protect and breed these reptiles to give them a successful future. Adders have slowly disappeared from the British countryside in the last fifty years leading to their inclusion in BAP – The government’s British Biodiversity Plan.

Adder Facts:
Vipera berus

Adders are the only species found inside the Arctic circle. They are also Britain's only venomous reptile.

Length: 50-65cm. Females are larger than the males.

Adders are short with large heads with a rounded nose and red-brown eyes. Males are usually a grey colour with vivid black markings, although they can also vary from silver to yellow or green in colour. Females are brown with dark red-brown markings that are less prominent than in the males. Both sexes have a zigzag pattern running along the back with a / or X-shaped marking at the rear of the head, although this zigzag pattern may be replaced by a straight brown stripe with dark spots on either side. Adders have black undersides.

Distribution
Adders are widespread throughout mainland Britain , but are absent from Ireland . They occur throughout Europe, with the exception of the Mediterranean islands, and across Russia and Asia through to N. China .

Habitat
Adders occupy a variety of habitats, including open woodland, hedgerows, moorland, sand dunes, riverbanks, bogs, heathland and mountains.

Diet
Adders use venom to immobilise prey such as lizards, amphibians, nestlings and small mammals. After striking their prey, they will leave the venom to take effect before following the victim’s scent to find the body. This is an economical way of hunting, avoiding any damage that could be caused by struggling with prey.

Behaviour
Adders are active during the day, spending time basking until their body temperature is high enough to hunt for food. In some of the hotter countries of their range, they may emerge at dawn and dusk to avoid the intense heat. Mating takes place between April and May, with males often fighting for females. They rear up at each other and try to push the head of their opponent onto the ground. Eventually, one male will give up and search for another mate. Adders hibernate from September to March when temperatures dip below nine degrees Celsius, often using deserted rabbit or rodent burrows, or settling under logs. They sometimes hibernate communally. Males emerge 2-5 weeks before the females and shed their skin before setting off in search of females.

Reproduction
April-May. Adders have a 3 to 4 month gestation period and are one of the few snakes that are viviparous (give birth to live young). In late August females give birth to between 5 and 20 live young, although usually the number is between 6 and 10. The young remain close to their mother for a few days, before going off in search of food.

Conservation status
Adders are protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 from being killed, injured or sold.

Adders are not aggressive snakes, and will only attack if harassed or threatened. Although an adder’s venom poses little danger to a healthy adult human, the bite is painful and requires immediate medical attention.

Other animals that hibernate:

Hedgehogs, dormice, frogs, toads, newts, slow worms, snakes, ladybirds and lacewings are all creatures that will hibernate in the UK and you may be lucky enough to find them in your garden!

Hedgehogs need to get their body weight up to survive the winter and you can very easily help with that, too. Leave out dog food, chopped peanuts, crunchy peanut butter, raw or cooked meat leftovers, muesli and a small amount of vegetables. Don’t leave bread and milk as it gives them diarrhoea.

Frogs and toads spend the winter in the mud at the bottom of ponds. If you have a garden pond you can really help your hibernators by floating a tennis ball in the water to prevent it from freezing over. Other amphibians hibernate in piles of leaves, long grass or logs.

Hedgehogs, Slow worms and other reptiles will snuggle down in your compost heap along with insects such as ladybirds and lacewings. They help to keep garden pests under control and stop you having to resort to pesticides.

Photos: Wildwood.