REPTILIAN TUESDAY # 16

REPTILIAN TUESDAY # 16

Well have we an odd reptile for you today! So we all know snakes have no legs right? And we all know lizards have 4 legs! But that last statement is not true! Yep folks, there are lizards out there with NO legs! What? Come meet this legless lizard!

MEET THE SLOW WORM!

Range/Habitat: Europe-Western Asia-Northern Africa/woodlands, yards

Diet: Carnivore: slugs, invertebrates

Length: 12-16”

Conservation Status: common

Fun Facts:

• Slow worms are not worms or snakes, they are lizards without legs.
• Slow worms are active at dawn and dusk.
• They have long life spans; they can live up to 50 years.
• Unlike snakes, slow worms have eyelids.
• Young slow worms have a metallic stripe that the females keep throughout their lives.
• They can lose their tails if caught by a predator, just like other kinds of lizards.
• Slow worms hibernate in the winter.

Slow worms are a funny lizard. They slither around like a snake, but they aren’t snakes! Crazy! They are considered to be very beneficial to have in a garden because they eat pests that can destroy crops! How helpful of them!