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sherlock holms: |
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ben rigsby Senior Member Joined: 27 Apr 2010 No. of posts: 337  View other posts by ben rigsby |
Posted: 19 Jul 2010 ive heard about the "giant" slow-worms on the island of Steep Holm in the bristol channel and im hoping to visit there soon. ive also read that nearby FLAT Holm has slow-worms with VERY large blue spots. disappointingly, neither website showed a decent pic. are the specimens equally as large on FH as the ones said to occur on SH? impressive looking beasts if thats the case! maybe i should go to FH instead! far more expensive to go there for me though. it doesnt look as attactive a place either from pix ive seen. but maybe youve bin and can tell me otherwise. has anybody visited either, or better still, BOTH islands and found? have you a tale to tell? let me put you under my magnifying glass....... 
sherlock. Diversity. |
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will Senior Member Joined: 27 Feb 2007 No. of posts: 330 View other posts by will |
Posted: 19 Jul 2010 Always wanted to go there myself, Ben. Hope you make it and let us know what you find. If memory serves, Tony 'Armata' Phelps recorded some very large ones there, and there was also an article in a book by Rodney Legg on the slowworms of Steep Holm and Flat Holm, many years ago. I reckon some new data from the field is definitely needed! Will |
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Matt Harris Senior Member Joined: 03 Jun 2003 No. of posts: 196 View other posts by Matt Harris |
Posted: 20 Jul 2010 I've heard that the Flat Holm slow-worms are larger and the males are 'bluer' than the mainland but have seen no evidence for this (although I've no reason to doubt it). Gwent Amphibian and Reptile Group (GARG) |
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herpetologic2 Senior Member Joined: 15 Jun 2004 No. of posts: 1369  View other posts by herpetologic2 |
Posted: 20 Jul 2010 I would be up for a trip - perhaps we could book a visit A RAUK members field trip like? J Vice Chair of ARG UK - self employed consultant - visit ARG UK & Alresford Wildlife |
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ben rigsby Senior Member Joined: 27 Apr 2010 No. of posts: 337 View other posts by ben rigsby |
Posted: 21 Jul 2010 hi j/folks. message me or post if interested in a meet-up and trip to look for the giant blue-spotted steepholm slow-worm. as a postie its extremely difficult for me to get time off at short notice and i have to work sats too. THEREFORE, the ONLY 3 dates when PROPOSED sailings to Steep Holm that i am AVAILABLE for THIS YEAR are; THIS SUNDAY 25 july (8am-6.30pm), tues 10 aug (9-6) and thurs 12 aug 9.45-7. sailings are every few days or so until 2nd wk oct dependent on weather/sea conds. these 3 dates all had seats for at least 3 people when i telephoned today. the vessel is often full to capacity though. it takes up to 90 passengers. no dogs. the island is 48a approx in size and you are free to wander at will but the kenneth allsop trust does not allow wildlife to be handled. so youll have to be eagle-eyed for in situ or flip n snap if its pix your after. turning over refugia is permissable provided objects are returned as they were . the lady on the phone said she had never seen an Anguis Fragilis Steepholmus specimen there herself. but WE know where to look! of course theres always the possibility of wet weather making finding more tricky too. black backed gulls are everywhere and not afraid to attack too apparently. so a lotta luck may be involved in finding. its not as if you can just come back again next week either is it?! id imagine itd be easy to search and not find a single one all day if conds are poor. be prepared. however, there are abandoned ammo store rooms, muntjac deer (what are THEY doing THERE? - you cant get a more genetically isolated population than THAT. mammals too), and victorian/ww2 gun batteries etc to see. if anyones interested in going and want to meet up id be more than pleased to see them. either surveying as a team or meeting up at the end of the day to compare notes and pix. if you want to go this sunday then get back quick as you have to notify the trust by post beforehand. check out the website. NB dont bother with flat holm. its 3 hour GUIDED tours only as far as i can tell. so youre gonna be extremely lucky to crop eyes on a slowiee there id imagine. Diversity. |
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Matt Harris Senior Member Joined: 03 Jun 2003 No. of posts: 196 View other posts by Matt Harris |
Posted: 21 Jul 2010 Part of the Flat Holm guided tour involves looking under their tins which they use to monitor the slow-worm population, although the guides (mistakenly) will advise you that you can't touch them because the site is a SSSI. There are also common lizards and a tortoise. Gwent Amphibian and Reptile Group (GARG) |
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ben rigsby Senior Member Joined: 27 Apr 2010 No. of posts: 337 View other posts by ben rigsby |
Posted: 21 Jul 2010 thanks for the extra info matt. i take it the LVs are "normal" sized! i wouldnt want to bump into any Flatholmodo Dragons. 
ben Diversity. |
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ben rigsby Senior Member Joined: 27 Apr 2010 No. of posts: 337 View other posts by ben rigsby |
Posted: 23 Jul 2010 hi RAUKers, i have placed my booking (by mail) for a trip to Steep Holm on TUESDAY 10 AUGUST and am awaiting confirmation from The Kenneth Allsop Memorial Trust. there are other places available if anyone fancies joining me. i would be more than pleased to meet any other forum members or visitors to our site for a day out. whether they be an AF expert from an official or professional body or just a lifelong amateur solo enthusiast like me. im easy to get along with people tell me! in case of bad weather and sailing cancellation, i have also requested THURSDAY 12 AUGUST as a reserve date. if no-ones available and with my recently aquired camera at the ready i intend to otherwise go it alone and subsequently post a field report here (assuming i have figured out how to post pix by then - i only bought my first computer this year!) 
DONT expect DAVEW-type quality pix though. i only recently bought my first digital CAMERA too!!!!!
im like the last tadpole of the season. slowly metamorphosing into a proper RAUK member. long after the main throng. oh well.
ive exhausted all my good anecdotes now too - regulars will be pleased to hear! any tips on snapping slow-worms appreciated. the island has plenty of trees and some old buildings so wooden/stone refugia should be plentiful but i realise ill probably have to be quick to photograph if its a warm day. since handling (and therefore calming) of specimens is forbidden. a cooler day affording less effective thermoregulation (for slow-worms that is, not me) might be an advantage for finding in refugia in this respect although the island will have (id imagine) quite unique conditions weather-wise and AF eco-system wise, compared to the mainland. lying as it does in the middle of the wind-swept and wet Bristol Channel. this is about as genetically-isolated a population as you can get! (will they die out eventually?) i wonder about the proliferation of Greater Black-backed (and other) Gulls too. they must pose a significant predatory threat to AF (esp young) possibly making them even more secretive in behaviour and harder to locate at this unusual site. soon find out! ben PS the Flat Holm/Steep Holm slowies remind me a bit of a Brit answer to the Tiger Snake populations in the Bass Strait between Australia and Tasmania which differ island to island from the ones on the mainland. pygmy ones etc. hard to imagine even the biggest AF feasting on a Gull chick mind you! Diversity. |
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tim hamlett Senior Member Joined: 17 Dec 2006 No. of posts: 572  View other posts by tim hamlett |
Posted: 23 Jul 2010 no chance of me joining you i'm afraid, although i'd love to, but i wish the best of luck and look forward to your field report. tim |
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dave fixx Senior Member Joined: 13 Mar 2007 No. of posts: 319  View other posts by dave fixx |
Posted: 23 Jul 2010 well if you look to the North you may see me on the cliffs of Haven holiday park Pwllheli where I will be trying to escape from the kids for 5 minutes to take in the local adder and slow worm populations.I wish you all the best Ben and if I can pinch a pedelo who knows I might just get down there to see you!
Dave Williams davewilliamsphotography.co.uk |
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will Senior Member Joined: 27 Feb 2007 No. of posts: 330 View other posts by will |
Posted: 24 Jul 2010 I'll be in Dorset, but I wish you well in the quest Ben - may the sun shine on your tins (but not too strongly) Will |
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will Senior Member Joined: 27 Feb 2007 No. of posts: 330 View other posts by will |
Posted: 20 Aug 2010 Any luck, Ben? |
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ben rigsby Senior Member Joined: 27 Apr 2010 No. of posts: 337 View other posts by ben rigsby |
Posted: 21 Aug 2010 hi will, yes sorry for my no-show post on Steep Holm so far. the simple reason being i dont know how to post pics. i hoping member kevinb will be over tomorrow to help me out. as it turned out i picked an awful day to visit SH! torrential rain for all but the last hour. however i still saw 7 slowies by turning. all as beautiful in my eyes as any - finding a slow-worm never palls for me. 1 of my 7 was quite large but i didnt see any "giants" bar a pic of the "largest slow-worm ever found in the uk" on the visitor centre wall. i took a pic of the pic. truly a monster at 20" in length. the upper torso is very blue. botanically i had a whale of a time and i catalogued 50+ native flora on the island inc some interesting ones like HENBANE. one of the uks most poisonous plants, used by Dr Crippen to murder his wife. plus a handful of aliens. although to be fair these hadnt spread from the herbaceous border in front of the visitor room as far as i saw. the island is host to the highly controversial introduction of alien deer, namely chinese muntjac (that should be removed in my opinion - up to 20 animals introduced by a high ranking bunny-hugger years ago). i didnt see a REEVESI of course but did spot their signs. there were many dead or dying gull chicks everywhere you went. presumably abandoned by parents and slowly starving to death. though gulls are far from my favourite birds and i appreciate that nature is often cruel, it was so sad to see the slow decline of mere infants. they were so approachable too. many had already been assaulted - broken wings etc bearing witness. weston raptors must have been having a ball. and scavenging cannibalistic adults. there were many stripped carcasses about. INTERESTINGLY; on steep holm there are NO MAMMALS (m reevesi aside). not even small ones like voles or even RN). maybe a bat or 2 AMPHIBIANS (tho there are two small ponds- presumably constructed for the benefit of thirsty alien deer then. no aquatic plants in either. other than DUCKWEED  !!)
OTHER REPTILES (perhaps a chelonid passes by once in a while!) FARM/DOMESTIC ANIMALS/BIRDS there are no reptile tins laid out on steep holm though the warden has a "private" one behind his cottage. caves and an ancient well have recently been discovered and as i understand it, are expected to be open to the public in due course. all in all, and by any standard, Steep Holm is a unique place. despite its small size, 1 day wasnt long enough to discover all its secrets. im definitely going back next year to SLOW-WORM ISLAND. on hopefully a better day weatherwise! finally, if any of the kenneth allsop memorial trust (especially organiser joy and warden chris) are reading this then id like to extend my gratitude to them for being so welcoming and for putting up with my endless questions! report to follow. soon i hope! ben Diversity. |
- sherlock holms |