Adder Update

I had made a note to give you a brief update eon our adders tomorrow, but excitedly ran back to my office to do it today as I have just seen one of our female adders out for the first time this year!

We have two females and three males. The males always emerge a couple of weeks before the females do, and I have seen all three. They all look in really good health, great news of course. Today I have seen the larger of the two females, again looking very healthy, and so I imagine the other female will be spotted over the coming days.

The three males have begun their first shedding process since leaving hibernation. Their skin goes very dull and almost with a grey sheen, and their eyes cloud over making them rely on their other senses for a few days. I would imagine they would have shed by the weekend, and will be looking at their best... a time I always look forward to as that is when you can get some really stunning photos of them.

Then of course the real fun begins... It will only be a couple more weeks and I would expect the females to shed and then the "dancing" will begin! Looking up the dates from last year, it was the second week of April when they seemed to display this behaviour regularly, but of course it could be anytime... but I will let you know as soon as it starts, and try and share some pictures with you.