never seen one in lots of fishing trips to many parts of scotland. great part of wild fishing it brings you to some remote places and a keen eye some great nature along the way. the last two trips that i have been up to rannoch moor i have seen a short eared owl hunting never seen one before so good to see. one time when i was fishing loch arkaig a alnighter i walked along the road to try another bay about 4 in the morning a scottish wild cat come out of bush and on to the road and stopped and looked at me before returning back the way it had come. it was its tail rather short and its size that a knew it was not your usual tabby. so where in scotland is adder country. are they absent from the scottish isles been to skye harris lewis shetland. and most countys in scotland. like to see one just briefly no get bitten just be my luck never seen one then step on one haha cheers andy m
Lots in the drier eastern Highlands. Glen Esk in Angus is famous for them, but they are everywhere.
Rather strangely you might think, the highest Scottish density is on Jura where I have seen a few. Plenty on the Arran hills also, and in the Lammermuirs.
Had never seen any either and then saw 3 in one day on a sunny day at Loch fyne in may. Sitting amongst the ferns next to the rocks gathering up heat.
thanks fred the east part of scotland . i fished up backwater dam loch shandra think a bit more north of there do you think glen prosen glen clova would be a good area for them. just have to find a few lochs up that way to try for a day ,though i would like to see one it would be a fishing trip come first with a rare chance o seeing a adder cheers andy m
Best time to see them is March / April when they emerge from hibernation. They take a while to get started up in the mornings and can be seen stretched out in the weak sun trying to warm up.
well they seem to be well spread then jura arran good spot bobfly, lochan load three at once just goes to show right place right time, thanks andy m
A pair curled up together and then another one that my dogs stepped on and got a right fright! Had a cracking picture of the pair but I've lost it since I changed my phone :roll:
that could be fred march april time when i would not consider fishing a bit higher in the glens bit early that i have maybe missed best chance of seeing a adder. good info and feed back from members here cheers andy m
Trossachs and the moss near the Lake is home to quite a few. Also seen a few in the sand dunes at Sands of Luce beach.
thats a good picture tony, looks ready to spring forward on a attack. fishing the morn up at loch laidon you never no might see one. seen something just recently cant remember where and this man seen two adders think he was on holiday and picked both of them up by the tail to get a picture, it was a bad idea as he got bitten and had to get taken to hospital and spend a few nights cheers andy m
I have a fishing mate who was bitten by one (through his waders) on the banks of the Spey at Easter Elchies. He was still feeling the effects a year later.
If you know how to handle them they're surprisingly docile. Much more so than grass snakes. But of course it's far better to leave them alone and just watch. Very beautiful creatures.
Quote from: Element on August 11, 2017, 08:47:14 PM
You'd have to be pretty naive and frankly stupid to think you could pick one up by hand
well, thanks for that vote of confidence :lol: i'm an experienced reptile handler with a lot of field research under my belt. but generally speaking you're quite correct and they're best left to get on with their lives. my point was that they're actually not especially aggressive, and given the chance will just slink away. Laxdale's mate must've unknowingly sat on one as that's one of only a very few cases i've heard of one penetrating clothing
British Snakes by Leonard Appleby is the seminal (and IMO unsurpassed) work on the subject and is a cracking read. worth looking up!