Nordens Ark 2011: Natrix natrix

Towards the end of our day at the Ark we were thrilled to get this close personal encounter with one of the park's no doubt many unauthorized residents, this lovely European grass snake, Natrix natrix. The park has all four of the Scandinavian species of snake in its herptile area, the Wetlands, but we didn't see a single scale of any of them on this visit. All the snakes are kept in outdoor enclosures, and of course with the very high temperature there was nothing to be seen of any of them. So while we were of course expecting that, it was still a bit of a disappointment ... especially to me ;-) ... but then we had this wonderful experience to make up for it. Natrix natrix can be very striking in appearance, and this beautiful female was crossing one of the footpaths when I caught sight of her. Of course I rushed over to catch her. As you can see, she was absolutely furious at being interrupted in this way while she was peacefully going about her business. You can even hear it if you listen closely ... she had no qualms about expressing her displeasure. I really stank afterwards. :-D But she seemed to be relatively used to humans as she never even tried to bite ... she was really only angry, not frightened. Good for her. :-) A really wonderful experience, and great to have my educated guess borne out that quite a few animals live at the Ark on their own initiative. :-)

Видео Nordens Ark 2011: Natrix natrix канала Leisha Camden