Searching for Early Spring Reptiles (and more)

Common Wall Lizard (male) sunbathing - Portland, Dorset, UK - 25 February 2026

After what has seemed like an endless succession of miserable, rain-sodden days, the sun has finally put in an appearance down here in Dorset. Spring is on its way, and this means that it's time to start looking for wildlife that has been hiding away over the winter months. The moth trap has been out (that's one for a separate blog), the first butterflies have been sighted and the hunt for reptiles has begun.

My searches for our cold-blooded friends have comprised both casual wanderings around likely sites in my corner of Dorset and structured survey work for the RSPB and Amphibian and Reptile Conservation (ARC) on the Poole Harbour basin heathlands carried out under licence, given the presence of protected reptile species in those areas. 

In terms of casual sightings, a walk around the Isle of Portland (not strictly an island, but that's how it's usually known) a few days ago was especially productive. I have written before about Common Wall Lizards (usually just called Wall Lizards in the UK) - here's a link to my blog. They are not native to Great Britain but appear to be thriving in a number of small colonies along the south coast, one of which can be found at Cheyne Weares on the eastern side of Portland. We have seen Wall Lizards here before in late February, and as it was a warm and sunny day, the chances of sightings seemed good.

Satisfyingly, this particular colony occupies a wall - in this case, a wall that is backed by thick scrub along a quarry edge that provides both shelter and foraging opportunities for the lizards. The first that we spotted is pictured at the top this blog, its body flattened out against the rock to maximise heat gain. The relatively thick head and mottled pattern on the back suggests that this is a male (but do let me know if you disagree). He remained quite still, apparently unbothered by our attention, and we left him to his basking.

As we walked on next to the wall, more lizards began to appear, beginning with another male:

Common Wall Lizard (male) - Portland, Dorset, UK - 25 February 2026 

This lizard had just emerged from a crevice between the stones and was clearly more alert to potential danger. Just after I took this photo, he beat a hasty retreat and vanished into cover.

Nearby, a nice group of three was rather more relaxed, allowing us to observe from a suitable distance:

Common Wall Lizards (female, male, juvenile) - Portland, Dorset, UK - 25 February 2026 

These are (from left to right) a female, a male and a juvenile; the difference between the mottled back of the male and the plainer, striped colouration of the female is easily seen. In total we saw 11 Wall Lizards along this stretch of wall, easily our highest number here. All of the males had the brownish background colour shown in the above photographs. As you'll see from my other Wall Lizard blog, males from this population can develop greener colours and a blue underside during the breeding season in April and May. What we were seeing here might have been one of the colony's first excursions into the outside world after the chilly (and wet) winter period. 

Formal transect surveys under ARC's National Reptile Survey are not due to begin until later this month. However, both ARC and RSPB organise early season visits to look for Adders that have emerged from their over-wintering sites (or hibernacula). These take place on lowland heathland around Poole Harbour, a superb place for reptiles which hosts all six native British species:

Lowland heathland at RSPB Arne, Dorset, UK - prime reptile habitat

One of the key aims of an Adder emergence survey is to find the locations of any over-wintering sites to ensure that they are not inadvertently damaged by heathland management operations. Unfortunately, despite two half-day searches - at Arne and Grange Heath respectively - no Adders were sighted. We know from previous records that they will be around, but it seems that conditions on the day(s) weren't right for them to show themselves. 

One compensation was my first Slow Worm sighting of the year (below). 

Slow Worm (female) - Grange Heath, Dorset, UK - 5 March 2026

Slow Worms are legless lizards that, at first sight, might be mistaken for a snake. Here's a link to my British lizard identification blog. The slightly darker striping on the sides of this Slow Worm suggests that she's a female.

A couple of magnificent beetles were also out and about at Arne. This marvellous three-'horned' Minotaur Beetle (below) is one of the dung beetle family (Geotrupidae). They dig burrows which they fill with rabbit (or other) droppings, making an ideal place to lay eggs. The 'horns', which are absent from females, must have an aggressive function, allowing males to defend resources such as dung piles or burrows (or even females) from their rivals. 

Minotaur Beetle (male) Typhaeus typhoeus - Arne, Dorset, UK - 26 February 2026

Also wandering along the heathland floor was this Bloody-nosed Beetle (below), another early emerging species. This is perhaps an atypical member of the leaf beetle family (Chrysomelidae), as it is usually found bumbling slowly along the ground rather than sitting higher up in the foliage. Unlike most beetles it's flightless, its larvae feeding on bedstraws (Galium sp). The dramatic-sounding name comes from its habit of exuding an unpleasant reddish liquid from its mouth to discourage would-be predators. We didn't aggravate it though, and it went safely on its way.

Bloody-nosed Beetle Timarcha tenebricosa - Arne, Dorset, UK - 26 February 2026

So, despite the absence of Adders (for the time-being - more surveys are planned) there was much to see on the Dorset heathlands. There usually is: these places are full of welcome wildlife distractions. And on that theme, I'll leave you with another over-wintering heathland resident - this Peacock butterfly (below) that we found on a pile of logs at Grange Heath, its colours especially vivid in the afternoon sunshine.

Peacock Aglais io - Grange Heath, Dorset, UK - 5 March 2026

References

Beebee, T. & Griffith, R. (2000) Amphibians and Reptiles (New Naturalist Series) London: HarperCollins.

Inns, H. (2009) Britain's Reptiles and Amphibians Wildguides

Jones, R (2018) Beetles (New Naturalist Series) London: HarperCollins. 

Speybroeck, J. et al. (2016) Field Guide to the Amphibians & Reptiles of Europe (British Wildlife Field Guides) London: Bloomsbury.