It was a pleasure to assist with the reptile survey at Wilding Waterhall Nature Reserve, in the South Downs, with Froglife. Tips, techniques and skills to help you survey for reptiles.
This location was previously a golf course, 5 years ago the lease was expiring on the land, and the Council were deliberating what to do with the land, when they approved a proposal from local groups to turn this area into a nature reserve.
The aim for this session was to carry out a visual transect for reptiles, which included walking around the site of mixture of open grassland, scrub and woodland, observing life and reptiles which may be found in the protected south facing zones as reptiles are ectothermic, which means they require an external boost to their body temperature to become fully active.
The best survey timing will vary with location, weather patterns and species, but generally reptiles are active from March to October. The best time to survey is a mixture of time of year, time of day and weather conditions.
As well as visually assessing the site we inspected several refugia across the nature reserve, these are man made hiding areas, mostly consisted of a 0.5 x 0.5m piece material located near protected shrubby boundaries. We found a few amazing creatures in these refugia, to include numerous adders, both adult and juvenile, as well as numerous slow worms and lizards.
We carried with us a reptile survey form, which was filled out as we explored the area, with information such as location, weather and ground conditions, species identified, the sex, and the life stage.
Why should we survey?
verify presence or likely absence of species;
monitor distribution and population change;
inform site management;
monitor for non-native species;
monitor for spread of disease and/or evidence of persecution;
contribute data to local biological recording centres;
it’s great fun and gets you outdoors among nature.
Where to look?
Good reptile habitat generally has open aspect areas, is well drained and south facing, is mostly sunny, sheltered and relatively undisturbed.
Typical habitats that have these qualities include:
Grasslands, heathland and Moorland, chalk downland, open woodland, young forest plantations, sand dunes, disused corners/edges of allotments, brownfield sites, golf courses, road and rail verges/embankments, private gardens
Additional valuable insects and plant life which were noted included:
Ploughman's spikenard, a chalk grassland indicator plant, the only food to Tortoise beetles which are listed as scarce in southern England.
Cistus forester moth, which frequents dry grassland on chalk and limestone hills, favouring warm, flower-rich, south-facing slopes.
Common blue butterflies
Hemp agrimony, which produce an aromatic and pleasant smell when the stems are cut,
Even if you are not a trained ecologist, by attending a couple of local surveys or volunteering with a local group will grow your confidence and understanding of what is required of a survey such as this as it provides any landscape professional with a greater understanding and knowledge for future projects and will be more prepared for conversations with clients as relates to biodiversity and surveys.
For more information and events on at Wilding Waterhall, visit the Facebook page Friends of Waterhall. Or to get involved with Froglifes several exciting activities over the year, visit Froglife
Thanks for reading, any questions, we would love to hear from you!
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