Yesterday I decided to check my pond to see if it needed topping up. I disturbed "something" lying on top of the plants sunbathing I assumed. It was black, about 3-4 inches long, snake like in shape and moved quite quickly to the side of the pond into the waterlily pots. I didn't notice legs or a head shape. It was much longer and thicker than any newts I have seen in my garden. Would newts grow that large, is there a water snake of some kind to fit the bill? It definitely was not a frog/toad. I didn't want to disturb it so moved away and haven't gone back yet to see if it is still there. Do I have my own Nessie? Any ideas welcome.
If it was in the pond it could be a young grass snake, I get a few slow worms and they are brown and usually not near the pond.
I'd go with a young grass snake especially if it went into the water. You can call it Nessie if you like, it won't mind.
I know a quick glance out of the corner of an eye can be deceptive but 3-4" is tiny for even a new born grass snake, they are normally born around double that size. As you are down in Cornwall, it does bring lizards into play as well and if it moved fast, could be a common lizard, they max out at about 5-6".
It can be difficult to estimate length in a quick glance and I've come across some very small young grass snakes in my compost heap that were in that size range, they also move quickly and can be quite dark in appearance with a yellow band round the neck and a distinct head. While can slow worms be a similar size but don't have a distinct head or yellow band.
Grass snakes float upon water, swim in/on the surface film, and travel forwards in a strait line while 'snaking' Could it be a Great crested newt ?: Great crested newt | The Wildlife Trusts
Thanks for your thoughts. Interesting I think it must have been a grass snake. I had never thought of them going into water. It was too dark in colour for a sloe worm, also too large, no yellow band around its neck. When it moved it didn't really wiggle but that may have been because of the weed it was moving through. I don't think it was a lizard because I didn't see any legs. I have seen a common lizard on my bank once but it was tiny and beige in colour.I had more than a cursory look at it from about 12ft away for several seconds so enough time to be very surprised.Definitely not a newt, although I do have them in the garden. Wrong shape,size and colour. I will have to mount another expedition to the pond although I doubt if it is still there. I have never seen anything in my garden remotely like it before but my garden is surrounded by open fields and stone banks so a haven for wild life. I found a dead baby stoat in my greenhouse recently, caught by the cat probably, didn't know we had them so close by. I have even seen a mink running along the side of the road in the evening. If I see my "Nessie" again I will try to make a better job of identification!
Its just a random thought but eels do travel across land in September in their (complicated life cycle) to travel back to the Salgasso sea. Could it be that you were lucky enough to see this elusive fish. Is your pond large enough to support eels/elvers ; they feed on fish, and aquatic creatures various.?
An interesting thought but I doubt it. I am in central Cornwall and my diddy pond is only 6ft diameter x 4ft deep. I am not far from river tributaries and clay pits but I have no idea how far away from water elvers travel. A fascinating idea. The main reason I do not think it was an eel is because what I saw moved in a straight line rather than moved from side to side. It was certainly more eel like in shape and size which is why the idea of it being a grass snake seemed possible I am going to google grass snakes and see the life cycle for shape, size colour etc.
Seems they can travel around 400metres per 'outing', taking around 20 minutes to do so. This may be of interest: European Eel - Farnham Angling Society
Yes, I googled amphibians, newts, elvers etc. You learn something new every day! I had no idea elvers travelled overland, nor how far they went. I did not know male crested newts lose their crests after mating, it is absorbed back into their bodies. My inclination is still with a grass snake at the moment. I did take a sneaky peek at the pond yesterday but all was very quiet I looked at a ruler yesterday and have revised the length of "Nessie" to approx. 5-7 ins. Plain black back. No legs or defined head. No scales, lumps or bumps. Moved in a straight line over the surface of the pond weed. No patterning or colour. I would love it to be an elver but think it unlikely, you never know. I am only a couple of miles from some of the tributaries of the White River which at this time of the year have almost dried up. My garden has always been a bit wild and woolly, au natural, I have only ever seen a common lizard once sunbathing on one of my stone walls, I "think" I may have heard a Natterjack toad once one evening, The noise was unbelievable, rarely see slow worms, usually when the cat has caught one, etc. but I know they are all there, quietly getting on with their lives. Enticing glimpses for someone who spends too long sitting and staring.
I lived right beside the White River as a child. It did actually run white in those days, and the banks were coated with clay. It was on the banks of the White River that I first learnt to identify Japanese Knotweed!
The White River makes one boundary to my daughter's garden. There was a forest of Knotweed along the whole valley but the council treated it which seems to have got rid of most of it. The water does not run white often now clay mining has reduced substantially. There is a working mine further inland from me but the train taking the clay to the port only runs for a couple of days every month or so for a couple of days.
