Aesculapian snake

I spent most of today at my mother's. After her customary trinity of lunch, nap and coffee, we went for a walk to her favourite bench and back. What used to be a 20-minute stroll once, takes her almost an hour now. Still, it’s good for her to get out in the fresh air, and I was glad we hat good weather after a rainy night and chilly morning.

Out at the bench I found I had not only forgotten to take my camera, but my mobile, too. So I could not take pictures of landscape, fields and cornflowers.

But I had my iPad in the car. Later, as I walked away from my mother’s house and almost stepped on this snake in her garden, I quickly ran to fetch it. Thankfully, the snake had not moved much when I got back. 

This really is quite special. There are only a few, isolated populations of the Aesculapian snake in Germany; one around the little spa of Schlangenbad in the southern Taunus hills, where my mum lives. 

They are non-venomous, and the biggest species of snake in Germany, with up to two metres length. 

The extra, with the toe of my shoe in it, is supposed to give you an idea of the size of this young adult. It was barely a metre long and about as thick as my thumb, but already quite impressive. 

I had not seen one for years, and was delighted to spot this beautiful animal in the garden today, and to get a blip of it as well.