For Anyone Interested in the Wildlife of the U.K.
Grass snakes would have been mating in April or May, and so in June and July the females are looking for suitable sites to lay their eggs.
The grass snake is easily recognised by the bright yellow and black collar markings. It's our only native snake which doesn't give birth to live young.
They frequently lay their eggs in compost heaps, where the heat inside helps to incubate the eggs. There are usually ten or more eggs in each clutch. The oval, matt white eggs are about 25mm to 30mm long. They take between six and ten weeks to hatch, depending on the temperature of their surroundings.
The photos above show the freshly laid eggs, and also some hatched, empty egg shells. You can see a small hole in the empty egg shells with some staining around it where the baby snake has emerged.
The baby grass snakes which hatch out are like little green boot laces, about 15 to 20cm long. They have to fend for themselves from day one.
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