Dance of the Adders

A great few hours with Tim this morning - on holiday for a week and hoping to catch up with a few of the Isle of Wight's Adders.

I was really surprised not to come across any in the scrub above Freshwater Bay, though it was very warm and I guessed they were already very active or else out of sight during the sloughing period.

Before leaving we checked some scrub below the Freshwater Bay Golf Course and caught a brief glimpse of a male that cottoned on to our scent and disappeared into the Gorse. 10 minutes later we returned to find 2 males 'dancing':



It looks like there was probably a female around somewhere. This 'Dance of the Adders' often results when a male guarding a female reacts to another male that turns up. As they rise up together, intertwining their bodies, they are trying to force one another to the ground. I think it's fairly clear who the victor is here!

A few minutes later one of the Adders reappeared from out of the Gorse: