Unknown snake skin with photos

[wellies101]

Hi All

I work in a country park near heathrow that has only 2 records of snakes (juvenile grass snakes) recorded last year since the park opened 14 years ago. While working this weekend a couple of lads brought me the below snake skin they found in the park.


Snakes head


Snakes back (note two vertical stripes)


Snakes underside

I have emailed our local reptile and amphibian group and am awaiting a response, but wanted to see if anyone here had any idea.

It is 120cm long, but some of the tail is missing (although the scales do decrease in size and become more frequent at the end of the skin) and the skin is slightly folded in parts so I would guess the complete skin is about 150cm's long. The gap betwee the inside of the eyes is 1cm, and the widest part of the skin when pressed flat is 5.4cm's.

It is the two stripes that intrigue me, I know it is within parameters to be a female grassie, but the stripes don't seem right? However, I know there are cases of striped morphs of grass snakes in the UK.

Anyone got any ideas?

James

[wildlifesnapper]

Hi,

the head scales look right for Grass Snake, and they are known to occasionally have stripes.

neil

[Ukwildlifeo]

A skin like that is too big to be any native snake other than a grass snake I would imagine

[Bothrops]

Hi,

This is a grass snake skin. Nice find, its rare to find them whole.

Rob

[WW]

That does not look like a grass snake skin to me. Grass snakes have keeled dorsal scales, and the keels normally remain visible in shed skins. Also, grass snakes have a single anterior temporal scale, that shed skin clearly has two. Finally, the lateral black bars in grass snakes normally remain pretty obvious on shed skins, whereas they are absent in this one, despite the fact that the dorsal pattern is retained.

Looks like some sort of escaped pet then.

[Bothrops]

I will post a head shot of an adder and a grass snake in the amphinian and reptile galery.
Should make it easier to compare.

Rob

[wellies101]

Hi All

I've been in touch with my local reptile and amphibian group and shown them the photos with a few measurements and the general concensus was Ladder Snake. This is a non-native, non-venemous snake and a quick google search will give you loads of info.

It was the pattern on the skin and details relating to the scales, etc. that lead us to firstly believe it was non-native and then to figure out what it was likely to be.

Problem solved! (hopefully). I've put tins out to try and capture and remove the snake, but we'll probably never see anything of it again.

James