slowworms
Serpentine but lizard
Slowworms are legless lizards native to Europe and western Asia, often mistaken for snakes.
They have smooth, shiny scales and can shed their tails when threatened.
Despite the name, they move with reasonable speed.
They're harmless, feeding mainly on slugs and snails: We found a slowworm under the compost heap.
Legless European lizard
- superstitionBaseless belief in omens
- misidentificationWrongly recognizing something
- harmlessCausing no injury
- shyReserved and retiring
secretive · docile · gentle · luck · omen · old wives tale · protective spirit · Celtic
Limbless squamate with eyelids
- reptileCold-blooded scaled vertebrate
- scalesPlates or weighing devices
- ectothermOrganism heated externally
- shed skinCast-off epidermis
forked tongue · eyelids · burrowing · slithering · vertebrate · herpetology · native species · protected species
Naked terrestrial mollusk
- snailShelled, slow-moving mollusk
- earthwormSegmented soil-dwelling invertebrate
- predatorOrganism that consumes others
- kestrelSmall falcon, aerial hoverer
hedgehog · cat · pheasant · badger · adder · grass snake · food chain · pest control
Decomposing organic material stack
- gardenCultivated plant area
- grasslandTreeless herb-covered ecosystem
- hedgerowLinear shrub boundary
- leaf litterDecomposing ground debris
rockery · log pile · woodland edge · meadow · undergrowth · stone wall · churchyard · allotment
blindworm
Legless European lizard
- superstitionBaseless belief in omens
- misidentificationWrongly recognizing something
- harmlessCausing no injury
shy · secretive · docile · gentle · luck · omen · old wives tale · protective spirit · Celtic · Anglo-Saxon
legless lizard
Limbless squamate with eyelids
- reptileCold-blooded scaled vertebrate
- scalesPlates or weighing devices
- ectothermOrganism heated externally
shed skin · forked tongue · eyelids · burrowing · slithering · vertebrate · herpetology · native species · protected species · non-venomous
slug
Naked terrestrial mollusk
- snailShelled, slow-moving mollusk
- earthwormSegmented soil-dwelling invertebrate
- predatorOrganism that consumes others
kestrel · hedgehog · cat · pheasant · badger · adder · grass snake · food chain · pest control · biodiversity
compost heap
Decomposing organic material stack
leaf litter · rockery · log pile · woodland edge · meadow · undergrowth · stone wall · churchyard · allotment · wild garden
- reptileslizard, snake, turtle, crocodile, alligator
- legless creaturessnakes, serpents, worms, slugs, cobras
- reptile traitsscaly, cold-blooded, slithering, forked tongue, shedding skin