A survey on the slowworm, a legless lizard, has found it breeding in the Burren, where it was first noticed in the late 1970s. The survey has now been extended by four Duchas rangers to include the Burren National Park and parts of south Galway. Co Clare, the only known location in Ireland where it is breeding successfully, is also home to the common lizard, a native species found predominantly in coastal counties. Both species are threatened by farm intensification practices.
"Habitats destruction is a big threat for the lizard," said Dr Ferdia Mardell, of the National Parks and Wildlife Service. "Farmland now goes right down to river banks and on to roads."
The original survey on slowworms, published in the Irish Biogeographical Society bulletin, found the species appeared to favour a mixture of three Burren habitats - limestone pavement, hazel scrub and calcareous grassland. Similar to a snake, it "evolved a legless skeleton to suit its burrowing lifestyle", the report states.
"The common lizard would be distributed throughout Clare but the slow-worm appears to be restricted to the north Burren," said Dr Mardell, who co-authored the report One theory is that New Age Travellers who arrived in the area more than 20 years ago introduced the species. Slowworms are commonly kept as pets in Britain.
Ongoing recordings are also being made of the common or viviparous lizard. It colonised Ireland after the last Ice Age, Dr Mardell said. Measuring up to 180 mm, it is normally brown or yellow with darker markings on the back.
A recent Irish Wildlife survey found the species was concentrated in Wexford, Cork, Donegal and Wicklow and usually in sand dune areas. But Dr Mardell said limestone pavement, bogs and heaths also provided habitats for them.
Sightings or recordings of lizards may be forwarded to Dr Mardell at 7 Ely Place, Dublin 2. fmardell@ealga.ie