grass snakes

[Gaboon]

i just got a phone call from a friend asking me to get some grass snakes out of her garden. she got rid of her pond in october and has been planning to build another this summer. meanwhile these (3 in all) young snakes probably hatched in her garden and have been feeding on tadpoles living in an unfilled trench where pipes need to laid.

i understand that this is not strictly kosha with the regulations set under the wildlife and countryside act but i had to remove them as there is now real lonturm home for them where thay where. i have a pond which is quite wild and will let them go there after ive taken some pics.

if anyone is in the know or whants to offer some advice in regards to finding the best release site then please post a reply.

thanks

[Anthony]

Hi,
Does the person who had them in her garden have a field etc near them if so you should release them there, if not they would be fine with you, aslong as you know there is food in your pond which they can consume
Can't wait for pics

[Gaboon]

not really and she does live near a road whare ive seen dead ones in the past and she has a lot of cats. i just when to check out my pond to see what sort of food is in there and their are tones of newts of all sizes so i THINK they will be ok down there. i found a mutent newt down there too! ill be posting a pic of that also. going by guides used for feeding captive snakes i reckon the largest one i got could easily take a newt but im not sure theres anough smaller prey for the smaller of the snakes. the pics should be up soon i just got to fing the camara.

[Anthony]

Yeah, i would let them go at your pond, atleast they won't get run over etc
They eat frogs, newts & tadpols etc
Looking forward to seing the pics of the grass snakes and the mutent newt. Have a look at this website, so it will give you a an idea of wether your pond is ideal for them: http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/wildfact...iles/278.shtml
Hope this helps

[Gaboon]

cheers will do.

[SilverSteno]

You should be able to alter your garden enough to provide them with everything they need, and if you can manage that then the females at least are likely to remain fairly resident in your garden. You already have a pond so thats the main thing out of the way. With the pond try to have an area with lots of vegetation, this is great for the amphibians to hide in reducing losses from birds like herons (even if you don't have a heron visiting now you could do in the future, they have a habit of appearing in garden ponds!) and provides cover for the snake. Other garden things that will benefit the snakes would be an open compost heap (can be a bit smelly though but this will encourage females to stay around as it is a great place to bury eggs), a log pile - great hiding spot. A few large rocks to bask on/hide under and a patch of overgrown grass again providing good cover. Also no pesticides or slug/snail killer because grass snakes will feed on invertebrates as well.

[gillsboy]

awww ur so lucky i love grass snakes, imo they the nicest british rep. gd luck and hope they stick around...cant wait for piccys

[SilverSteno]

Something else you need (and again a compost heap is good for) is a safe place for them to hibernate in. Best to get the hibernating site established well before bonfire night though because bonfires are perfect for the snakes to hibernate in until someone throws a match on it...

If you have somewhere else set up nearby for them they'll be far less chance of a bbq snake in a neighbours garden because they won't have to look around if there is the perfect place there. Some of the amphibians in the pond will probably use the compost heap to hibernate in over the winter as well.