As you may know, I work with Adam on www.hongkongsnakeid.com, but whilst in the UK on my walk across the New Forest today - which is evening HK time - I was rewarded with this little beauty, so I thought I would post it this evening/early am HK time.
This is of course Vipera berus, the common European adder or common European viper, which is Englands only venomous snake.
My sister, Nikki, spotted this one on the path in front of us, and I had a couple of minutes with it in the sun, before it shot off into the heather.
The adder is a relatively small, stocky snake that loves the woodland, heathland and moorland habitats, like in the New Forest. It hunts lizards and small mammals, as well as ground-nesting birds, such as skylark and meadow pipit.
Females incubate the eggs internally, 'giving birth' to three to twenty live young. This snake is easy to identify, with a very distinct zig-zag pattern down its back, and a red eye.
Whilst there we also got to see the wild ponies and horses running free that the forest is famous for, and with the heather blooming, it is a wonderful sight.
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