Mark Harrison, took some fantastic images of a snake on the edge of the North York Moors, as he urged dog walkers to keep pets on leads
Mark Harrison spotted the adder on the edge of the North York Moors area(Image: Mark Harrison)
A dog walker is urging people to take care after capturing these stunning pictures of an adder on the edge of the North York Moors. Mark Harrison spotted the reptile while walking his Weimaraner, Ashen, and managed to take shots from a safe distance.
The 50-year-old, from Guisborough, said he is aware of the locations of the adders, which he did not want to share. Adders are vulnerable with declining numbers and he urged people to keep their pets on leads in the area.
Mark has seen the snakes twice in the past few weeks. The venomous but shy creatures start emerging from hibernation when the weather starts warming up from about mid-February.
“I obviously had the dog on the lead so I crept up slowly and took a couple of snaps,” he said. “They are not necessarily on the main paths because they don’t like disturbance.
“They are shy and vulnerable. For an attack to happen they do have to be provoked.”
Adders are the UK’s only venomous snake and a protected species that are classed as vulnerable to extinction in Great Britain. Numbers have declined dramatically over the past decade due to habitat loss and disturbance.
Mark kept his distance and took the pics using the zoom on his camera(Image: Mark Harrison)
The stunning creatures are shy and unlikely to attack unless provoked(Image: Mark Harrison)
They are fully protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and it is illegal to intentionally kill or injure them. Mark said he has been walking the area for years and has noticed fewer sightings of them.
“They are declining in numbers – this last year or two I’ve seen them less often,” he said. “Nationally and locally they are struggling due to habitat loss and they are very, very vulnerable.
“The fires are starting to get up in Guisborough woods. I’m walking all the time up the woods and I see less wildlife that I used to.
“The fires and the mountain bikers and dog walkers are all having an impact.” He urged people to keep their dogs on leads in the area and said the adders will keep their distance if they sense danger.
“They are mainly along the moor edge and dogs are supposed to be on the leads on the moors anyway,” he said. “I see a lot of dogs off the leads and, it’s not just the adders I worry about, it’s ground nesting birds, and the sheep.
“The only time you see them out really is early in the morning when they are warming up their blood, basking in the sun before they go off hunting small mammals. They scent the air with the tongue and have quite good eyesight and will keep away from danger – the likes of dogs, humans and birds of prey.”
The common European adder classed as vulnerable, with populations declining extensively over the decade(Image: Mark Harrison)
Mark urged walkers to keep their dogs on leads in the Guisborough Woods and North York Moors areas(Image: Mark Harrison)
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