The UK’s Only Venomous Snake
Seldom seen, but still making its home amongst the heather and bracken in places across the UK, the adder (Vipera berus) is one of our most fascinating, beautiful and misunderstood residents. I went to Dumfries and Galloway in Scotland in search of Britain’s only venomous snake where they have held out for thousands of years, although their numbers are now believed to be in decline.
I have long held a wariness and fascination for adders, ever since my Dad warned me that the compost heap in our house in the Cotswolds was home to a family of adders including a small collection of adderlings! This intrigued and terrified me and I, perhaps for the good of all concerned, never ventured too near the compost heap again.
My wariness is in keeping with my ancestors; the word adder is derived from the old English ‘naedre’ meaning ‘serpent' or ‘creeping thing.’ Folklore suggests shepherds and farmers had long been wary of their bite and the damage it might cause them and their livestock. A bite from an adder is unlikely to be fatal, but would likely result in hospitalisation and certainly form the low point of all but the worst days out. However, the adder’s reputation for danger is undeserved. Placid and cautious by nature, adders are more likely to seek shelter and avoid contact with humans as soon as they are aware of our presence.
Adders are very hard to spot, they may occasionally be seen basking in the morning sunshine after they emerge from hibernation from February. I had the privilege of photographing this adder courtesy of a workshop organised by Alan McFadyen in a quiet spot amongst a tranquil sea of bluebells in the Dumfries and Galloway sunshine in Scotland in May 2026.
In the photographs you can see the adder flicking its tongue to analyse its surroundings. It uses its forked tongue to collect moisture and scent particles in the air and on the ground to sense the direction scents are coming from.
I used a Canon R5 mirrorless camera with a 100-500mm telephoto lens. You might be surprised by how small adders are, perhaps only around 70cm long and only a few cm wide, weighing not more than 200g. I was normally shooting at 500mm to get a full frame shot without placing myself closer to the adder than either of us wanted.
It was an experience I’ll never forget to come face to face with the mysterious visitor to my childhood compost heap and experience their beauty and placid nature.
Adder taking stock of its surroundings
