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The slowworm is one of Britain's most brilliant and unusual creatures - it's called a worm but it's not! It looks like a snake but it's not a snake either. In fact, it's a lizard - but it doesn't have legs!
If you want to take a look for yourself, here's how to build a slowworm home to attract some of these Brilliant Creatures to your garden, park or school.
You will need:
Some old bricks, grass cuttings, twigs and leaves, an old carpet tile, string, a pencil and a long stick.
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You need to find a sheltered place to build your home, so choose carefully, because once you've built it you shouldn't move it because that could harm the wildlife that has moved in.
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Slowworms like to live in places that are dark, safe and warm, so start by arranging the bricks into four walls, just like a real house.
Leave gaps so that the slowworms can get in and out easily.
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Now pile in the grass cuttings.
Add in any hedge clippings, twigs or old sticks and cover with more grass and leaves.
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You can get carpet tiles from carpet stores and some DIY shops - we're using one that's actually from a carpet sample book.
An old off-cut of carpet will do just as well.
The carpet provides a warm place for the slowworms to sleep and keeps them close to the top of the home so that you can see them easily.
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Poke a hole in one corner of the carpet (if it's from a sample book, it'll already have one!)
Take a 20cm piece of string, double it over and push the two ends through the hole. Turn the carpet over and tie both ends of string to an old pencil - this'll keep the string secure and stop it from slipping back through the hole.
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The loop of string enables you to lift the tile up with a stick, so that you don't have to use your hands.
You should never get too close to wild animals and you never know what might take up residence in your home. You might even attract an adder - Britain's only poisonous snake!
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After a few days, go back to your home, take your long stick and poke it through the looped string on the carpet tile. This will enable you to gently lift the tile and peek at what's moved in. If you're lucky you might find a slowworm or two.
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To help you identify a slowworm as well as some of the other visitors you might get, click on the buttons below for more information on slowworms, grass snakes, smooth snakes and adders!
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