Snakes alive!

It’s been cool again today and I’ve wasted almost the whole day because the weather forecast was for continuous rain that never materialised. So I couldn’t start on servicing the Savannah or cutting the grass, which is becoming somewhat urgent once again, because of the risk that it might start raining in the middle . However, I’ve just come in from my garden where I’ve been seeing how the new trees are coming on – the answer is fine – and disposing of a few more big stones that were lying on the surface of the ground.

I retrieved a small length of wood that was missed when the builders cleared away the old roof timbers and took it round to the front of the house to keep it as it might be useful as a ground peg when I eventually come to mark out for the base of a garage. I was going to put it down next to the ‘abri’ (tool shed) and as I was doing so the sun was shining quite brightly and making it quite warm. And there, in a small bush front of the ‘abri’ was an adder enjoying the warmth. I think it was quite a young snake from its girth but it had the typical adder colouring of a dark zig-zag along the length of its brown body.

Where I live is outside the boundaries of the areas of France said to be inhabited by adders so this came as something of a surprise to me. I know from my old house that there are lots of grass snakes that are disturbed when the grass is cut for hay but this is the first time I’ve seen an adder. This one looked to have made its escape by disappearing into a hole under the concrete base of the ‘abri’ and if so, I’d guess there must be a nest there.

The question is, if there is, will any more young snakes emerge, and if so, how many? But although adders are more scared of contact with humans than we are of them, I’ll watch my step (literally) when around and about the front of the ‘abri’ in future, especially if I’m wearing flip-flops, which I very frequently am, which I very frequently am, and was when I spotted the snake.