Reintroduction of the Smooth Snake in the UK
Heathland Restoration Aids Expansion of Rare Reptile Population
Aug 28, 2009
The smooth snake (Coronella austriaca), a native reptile of the United Kingdom, was lost from much of its former range during the 1950s as heathland habitat was cleared for development. The non-venomous snakes will be returned to restored heaths in Devon as a first step toward expanding their range back to its former extent.
Secretive Smooth Snakes are Poorly Understood
The smooth snake is so called because it lacks a ridge on its scales, which gives it a flat appearance compared to other UK native snakes such as the grass snake (Natrix natrix) and adder (Vipera berus). The species is little understood because of its secretive ways, wrapping itself around the stems of heather plants to bask camouflaged in the sun and spending a significant amount of time underground. It is known that smooth snakes feed on lizards and small mammals.
Today, knowledge of the species is growing, largely through the work of the Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Trust. Monitoring and surveying programs have determined that there are remnant populations on UK lowland heaths in Sussex, Surrey, Hampshire and Dorset but there is still a great deal of work to do to completely understand this reptile species.
Reasons for the Decline of the Smooth Snake in the UK
The smooth snake requires the mature vegetation of a well-managed heath to provide cover. As heathlands disappeared and became fragmented the number of smooth snakes declined. The last smooth snake in Devon was documented in the 1950s. Destruction of heathland has also had an impact on the smooth snake’s prey species.
The Smooth Snake Reintroduction Project
The largest concentration of smooth snakes in the UK today is in the New Forest. This reptile is not particularly mobile and most of the UK’s present day heathland is fragmented and isolated making it unlikely that the native reptile would be able to recolonize sites in Devon on its own.
In response to this issue, the Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Trust, along with the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) and the East Devon Pebblebed Heaths Conservation Trust have joined forces to bring the smooth snake back to the Devon heaths. Snakes will be translocated from areas of Dorset where populations are healthy.
The intended restored heathland ecosystem in east Devon is managed by the RSPB. There has already been an increase in other wildlife at this restored heathland, with Dartford warblers (Sylvia undata) and silver studded blue butterflies (Plebeius argus) topping the list.
With reptile and amphibian populations declining around the world, efforts to reintroduce species into restored habitat will likely be increasingly important to protect isolated populations from the threat of extinction.
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