Vipers

[Peanuts]

I know it has been dry and hot in S England recently. Here in SW France there have been several sightings of  vipers on the track beside our veg plot in the last few weeks.  Someone nearby was bitten yesterday and was rushed to hospital.  Also yesterday, an elderly neighbour, a very wise "country man" unknowingly disturned a viper,  which rose up in front of him very aggressively.  Has anyone else experienced more of these than usual.  I think I need to beware, as I'm often gardening in sandals.
Peanuts

[antipodes]

Whereabouts are you? I will be there on holidays next week! I will be in the Lot et Garonne, near the river, between Agen and Moissac.

They say you get vipers even here in Brittany. But as an Australian you can imagine that I am pretty unfazed by the wildlife here!!!

[Peanuts]

hello, I  hope the weather holds for you. We are quite a bit further south of where you will be, on the edge of the Pyrenees, so we have a fair amount of rain, and it is always very green!
Enjoy your  holiday, but look out for vipers!
Peanuts

[1066]

Friends of mine live just outside Hastings and they have found them in their garden - one got tangled up in the strawberry netting and they had to get help with that one! I guess in this hot dry weather they are more visible?

and yes maybe change those sandals!!

1066 

[Jeannine]

We only get Garters and Red Racers bit OK,, but up  the highway towards the valley they get Rattlers.

XX Jeannine

[cleo]

The only time I have seen an adder(viper?) was some years ago in my polytunnel, it went out one door almost a quickly as I went out the other.
,
The snakes I truly loathe are grass snakes-they invaded this village about 8? years ago and we still have no frogs or toads.  Before that there were literally hundreds in my garden alone

[Robert_Brenchley]

Grass snakes won't kill your dog or land you in casualty though!

[GrannieAnnie]

There are poisonous copperheads in our state though we've never seen one in our garden.
Even though garter snakes and black snakes are not poisonous I loath stepping into an overgrown patch for fear of meeting one.
We've seen 6 foot black snakes- not pleasant and smelly if you touch them.

[Jeannine]

I was dreaming about these adders last night,probably because I have been thinking about it. I have never seen one and for some reason thought they were in the North, certainly never heard of one in Hull.

Are they regional?

XX Jeannine

[Chrispy]

thought they were in the North, certainly never heard of one in Hull.

Are they regional?

XX Jeannine

They are the most northerly, that is, they are found all over but they can be found further north than other snakes.

My neibour had a large nest when I was a kid, so that would have been mid 70's and in the south.
Saw one last year, I was in the midlands.
Thats all I've ever seen, they are a rare sight

[pigeonseed]

They're shy aren't they? So maybe they're more common than it seems. We were always told as kids not to wade about in bare legs in the long grass at the edge of woods. That was where my dad seemed to think they would hide.

I've heard there are some grass snakes and maybe sloworms on our site. My neighbour makes lots of noise before he mows, so they have time to run away (run?? what am I thinking of??  )

[Morris]

Our local woods (Hampshire) are an SSSI/nature reserve and full of adders.  I have seen them quite frequently sunning themselves on the paths, but funnily enough, not at all this summer (we were away for the whole of the heatwave   )