When looking at the ancient features of the slow worm they seem aptly named. To my mind they’re like the wise old man of the British reptiles, perhaps it’s their lidded eyes which snakes lack. But although these legless lizards may not be as nippy as their snake counterparts they can be pretty quick when heated up on a summers day.
I recall their agility from ecology work in a former life. Firstly we counted the slow worms under carpet tiles left in the sun to heat up (in a similar situation to this picture), we then did our best to safely catch them and take them to a new reserve. To the touch they are phenomenally smooth. They have subtle coloured patterning of metallic greys, earthy browns and sometimes flecks of blue, and despite what some people think, I reckon they're a pleasure to hold and behold.
Slow worms don’t have the venom or bad smell deterrents of UK snakes. Like other lizards their main defensive ability is to drop their tails, leaving it wriggling in the jaws or talons of a predator while they escape into the undergrowth (this ability gave them their Latin name Anguis Fragilis ‘fragile snake’).
While it’s not an offence to move a slow worm, it is illegal to intentionally kill or injure them. So it’s not just incomprehensible but illegal to hurt them under the Countryside Act 1981.
For gardeners these reptiles should be a welcome sight as they largely feed on slugs. In payment, the provision of a nice warm compost heap can give them a place to heat up and give birth to their young.
Baby slow worms are very small (70-100mm) and are born in a sort of slimy egg pouch that brakes soon after birth. Breeding happens in May and the young are born August-September. During the winter, late October- early March, slow worms find a snug place to hibernate.
Adults only reach about a foot and a half in length and are much thinner than our resident snakes. Their main predators are kestrels and especially domestic cats, but rats and even hedgehogs can make a meal of them. There’s no quiet retirement waiting for these old men.
In this years Make Your Nature Count slow-worms feature for the first time and we need your help to build up a picture of their numbers across the UK. The survey takes just one hour to complete and you’ve got till 10 June to do it. Get involved!
It's definitely worth considering the best time to turn the compost heap, so thanks for commenting. The best times are at the end of May, after they have mated, or in October when the young have left, doing it carefully with a pitch-fork.
You should avoid turning the compost heap whilst they are hibernating between November and mid-March. Hope this helps.
We moved house late last year and were delighted to find, this spring, that we have slow worms. We are now wondering when is the best time to turn the compost heap to minimise the risk of harming our slow worms.