25 September β 19 October
the coastal calendar, unshifted
Hot open garrigue; the fastest snake here, usually seen as a line vanishing into scrub.
Hunts lizards by sight in the middle of the day, at temperatures that put most snakes into shade. It is one of the species most sensitive to the loss of open garrigue to scrub, so it is retreating as terraces are abandoned.
photos, sightings and recordings, off this site
where this species is on the list
| Phase | When | Length | What it means |
|---|---|---|---|
| wintering in cover | 20 October β 24 March | 156 days | Reptile dormancy β sluggish rather than truly asleep, and broken by warm spells. |
| going about the year | 25 March β 30 April | 37 days | Feeding, holding territory, doing nothing the calendar singles out. |
| courting | 1 May β 14 June | 45 days | Song, display, fighting, scent-marking β pairs forming or reaffirming. |
| on eggs | 15 June β 24 August | 71 days | Clutch laid and being incubated, or buried and left to the sun. |
| raising young | 25 August β 24 September | 31 days | Dependent young in the nest, den or burrow, being fed. |
| young dispersing | 25 September β 19 October | 25 days | Young leaving for good, looking for a territory of their own. |