Animal reintroduction in the UK is a fiercely debated topic, whether it's intentional, for example, the recaptured lynx in Scotland, or accidental, such as pests and amphibians coming to the shores through the international plant trade.
However they arrive, climate change is affecting the ways in which these non-native species are behaving in the UK.
Researchers from Bournemouth University decided to study one of the nation's most surprising success stories: the Aesculapian snake.
Native to central and southern Europe, they are non-venomous reptiles that mostly eat rodents, such as rats. The snake species has three thriving populations which have descended from escapees – one of these is in Colwyn Bay, north Wales.
So, why were these snakes thriving in the UK's chillier temperatures?
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Tom Major, a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Animal Biotelemetry at Bournemouth University, led a team which implanted a radio tracker into 21 snakes and spent two summers (during June–October 2021 and May–September 2022) tracking them around the countryside.
The results of the study found that the snakes were climbing walls and entering buildings, such as attics, while digesting food or preparing to shed their skin, to keep as warm as possible. They also used garden compost bins for shelter and to incubate their eggs.
The snakes appeared to coexist with suburban wildlife and there were no indications that their presence was affecting native species.
Aesculapian snakes are not actually novel to the UK, but instead disappeared during a previous ice age – it's estimated that the species has been absent for around 300,000 years.
It's been reported (in The Conversation) that the snakes will be considered by the government for addition to the list of alien species of special concern – which would be grounds for eradication of the species. However, recent surveys of this snake in more southern parts of Europe have discovered a rapid decline.
Writing in The Conversation, Major said "Protecting and conserving the maximum possible diversity of species and ecosystems is the heart of the conservation agenda. However, the rapid pace of change forced upon our planet requires us to rethink what is practical and desirable to achieve.
"Conservation within the silos of national boundaries is an increasingly outdated way of trying to maintain the diversity underlying global ecosystems. Instead, conservationists may need to accept that the rapidly changing environment necessitate shifts in the ranges of species. And perhaps, even assist those species incapable of moving on their own."
Read the full paper on PLOS ONE.
Main image: Aesculapian snake/Getty
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