Non-native reptiles in the UK

[Mujician]

I just wondered if anyone has any definitive sightings/stories of reptiles living in the UK. There seems to be lots of talk of corns etc.

The reason I asked was I was on a school with some of my reptiles giving a talk to the Y1/2 class and one of the teachers mentioned her son came home one day in the middle of winter saying he'd seen a giant lizard. Everyone laughed at him. Needless to say some of the family went back out with him to the field (they live on a farm) and there was (what was described to me as) an Iguana. Quite chunky, big dulap under its chin and spines all along its back. As it was winter it was moving very slowly. Im not sure what happened to it, whether it was brought in from the cold or if they lost sight of it.

What would its chances of survival be in the wild over winter?

[joeyboy]

I imagine a frost would kill it off it hadn't found a way into a heated building, basking wise not sure if the winter temps in the day would be enough to get it very mobile..

[rum&coke]

My guess would be there are probably quite a few escaped things nocking about but I doubt they survive for very long I would think the winter and lack of food would pretty much kill them off, And even if they did survive and find others of the same kind I really doubt any eggs would hatch from breeding to start a wild population.

[wolves121121]

some non native reps which are breeding are wall lizards, green lizards and aesculapian snake

[sean_mac]

would be orite if there was loads of reptiles wild in the uk if they could survive the weather that is

[karlh]

There are a colony of Aesculapian snakes living in North Wales and I heard they live along the Thames in London too

[xautomaticflowersx]

Then of course there are the slider turtles in various lakes and ponds UK-wide. They copulate and lay eggs, but accepted opinion is that the eggs won't hatch due to our cool climate. However I read a report somewhere online suggesting that eggs had hatched as there had been several tiny neonates spotted. Though of course they could just be somebody's dumped hatchlings.

EDIT: Oh and then there's this... Big turtle found in birmingham lakes

Pretty sad about the iguana the OP mentioned though. If it hadn't been rescued the odds aren't much in it's favour.

[exoticsadmirer]

there's a couple of snappers been pulled up from lakes and resevoirs like this one
West Midland Safari Park
second one down on the latest news.

[Bradley]

a local aquatics shop near me has a large pond outside and about 20 years ago four ssliders got out when the owner was cleaning the cage (they were his personal pets and he put them outside whilst cleaning the cage) Thay made their way to the pond and i often see them. There are now over 20 sliders in the pond and noone else has put sliders in there and ther are turtles of all sizes so they must be breeding

[Lord Monty]

i once wrestled with a burmese python in a national trust park:P