One of the most important aspects of wildlife conservation is recording the presence of the animals in question. Nothing can be done to protect them unless we know where they are and this is where you can help. LARG is particularly keen to receive reptile records for the Lothians because, although they can be locally common, their distribution is scattered and localised, making them vulnerable to all the usual threats such as land development, intensive agriculture, excessive use of pesticides etc. So if you have seen lizards, slowworms or adders in the area, or indeed anywhere in Scotland, please let us know. The more information about habitat and location you can give us the better. The ideal is a six figure Ordnance Survey grid reference but don’t worry if you can’t provide this. Just tell us which species you saw, roughly when and indicate where you saw it as precisely as possible. If you can also describe the habitat and weather conditions at the time so much the better, but this is not essential. For example if you just happened to spot a lizard while walking in the Pentlands last summer we’d still love to hear from you.

 

 

There are far more amphibian than reptile sites in the Lothians but this doesn’t mean the future of our toads, frogs and newts is in any way secure. The great crested newt for example is extremely rare and one of the most strictly protected animals in Europe. The focus of any amphibian colony is the breeding pond which they all return to in spring and first and foremost it’s the ponds we need to know about. If you know of a pond which is used for breeding by any or all of our local species, even if it’s just a small pond in your back garden, then please get in touch. We are particularly keen to hear about breeding colonies of newts as these are less widespread than frogs and toads. If you have been lucky enough to spot great crested newts in the wild, then you have conservation knowledge of international importance and we’d be delighted to hear from you.