# british adders?



## metallica fish (May 5, 2009)

i was wondering if anyone here keeps adders?
if anyone breeds them?
where you can find them?

and some general info on them

im not looking to keep any BTW. i wouldnt bring venomous snakes in the house cos i have kids

thanks
liam


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## slippery42 (Mar 23, 2008)

metallica fish said:


> i was wondering if anyone here keeps adders?
> if anyone breeds them?
> where you can find them?
> 
> ...


Vipera berus are particularly hard to get feeding in captivity (particularly Wild Caught individuals).

Captive bred are very hard to come by and the issue of proving that they are not wild caught comes to play.

They are a protected under thew Wildlife and Countryside Act which prevents (or should) them form being sold or exchanged.

I do not know of anyone who has bred them in the UK other than in outdoor vivaria at a couple of specific collections.

I know of a couple of instances of wild caught females giving birth but these would be illegal to sell or trade and are not CB.

Having worked with the species professionally for nearly 30 years I'd love to breed them but will not even try until I'm in a position to have an outdoor breeding set up.

Natural England and ARC (amphibian and reptile conservation) do keep a close eye open for people possibly selling british species illegally.

As for where to see them its probably best to get in touch with one of the local Reptile and Amphibian Groups or contact ARC through a google search.

There are a few here on the forum who work regularly with the species but whether they will take you out is adifferent thing as most of us tend to be very protective of Adders.


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## adam567265 (May 28, 2009)

Dont really know alot about adders but i know norfolk is full of them



************CONTENT REMOVED BY CBR1100XX***********************


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## slippery42 (Mar 23, 2008)

adam567265 said:


> Dont really know alot about adders but i know norfolk is full of them



Can I suggest that you do not give out locations of adders as that is bad practice for obvious reasons!


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## darren81 (Aug 13, 2009)

metallica fish said:


> i was wondering if anyone here keeps adders?
> if anyone breeds them?
> where you can find them?
> 
> ...


 
Adders do come under dwa they are also protected by law, illegal to trade or sell ect or even to provoke them


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## snakeboy101 (Jul 3, 2006)

slippery42 said:


> Can I suggest that you do not give out locations of adders as that is bad practice for obvious reasons!


Even though you could find their location with a quick google search?


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## slippery42 (Mar 23, 2008)

snakeboy101 said:


> Even though you could find their location with a quick google search?


You will find that almost without exception conservation workers, ecologists and those working and caring for the species frown upon locations being given on forums.

The reason isnt elitist or anything like that its because adders are regularly attacked by F*kwits and killed or severely maimed.

The less information given on locations the happier 

In addition they are easily disturbed.


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## metallica fish (May 5, 2009)

everything is bad practice on this forum... read that sooo many times


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## Azemiops (May 1, 2008)

Graemes completely right. Adders have a hard enough time as it is, they certainly dont need site locations being given out on forums for everybody to know about. It might seem innocent, but even enthuthiasts with the best intentions could comtribute to a local decline if the adders get disturbed on a regular basis.


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## budmonitor (Dec 29, 2008)

It would be a good idea to listen to Slippery42 on this one, if you want some one who knows about this subject it's him and he's not trying to be rude just doing what is right to help the species.

We only have a few fragile spcies of reptiles as it is, so the more we can to do preseve them the better.


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## Captainmatt29 (Feb 28, 2009)

There are thousands in the cotswold where i live, they live in quarries etc round here.


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## slippery42 (Mar 23, 2008)

messengermatt said:


> There are thousands in the cotswold where i live, they live in quarries etc round here.


there may well be but please please keep exact locations to yourself!!


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## turpin's corner (Jul 28, 2009)

absolutely agree slippery42... :2thumb:

There are a number of species under threat here in the UK be it birds, reptiles or fish..

Protecting their locations goes a long way to protecting their survival... 

:Na_Na_Na_Na:


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## Alex M (May 28, 2008)

slippery42 said:


> You will find that almost without exception conservation workers, ecologists and those working and caring for the species frown upon locations being given on forums.
> 
> The reason isnt elitist or anything like that its because adders are regularly attacked by F*kwits and killed or severely maimed.
> 
> ...


Totally agree with your stance on this issue, well said slippery.


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