I have a question.

Today I was out for a run, and as I was just getting to the footbridge over to Rapperswil, when I nearly trod on what appeared to be a snake.

It was grey, and maybe 1 inch girth, and about 150cm long.

If frightened the beejesus out of me (never run so fast in me life I tells ya), but then I got thinking.

Odd time of the year for a snake to be sunning itself... Could it have perhaps been a water snake?

I think I frightened it too with my elephant in ski boots jogging style, and it went straight for the bank of the lake, which was only about a meter away....

Are there water snakes in the lake?

I really do not want to know the answer to that question

I don't think Zurich has water snakes, as you might think of sea snakes. But all snakes and in particular grass snakes (matching your description) love a swim. Also, the lake will be a great source of food for the grass snake, as frogs will be a-plenty. You might see some snakes, it is however nearing hibernation time.

Wowzers.

So in actual fact I nearly tripped over a snake

As it was close to the lake, could it perhaps have been an Eel?

No, there is no way.

I am from Australia, I am acutely aware of what snakes look like

I was just checking whether there was a snake doppelganger that hung out in the lake

Bloody hell! That is quite large for a grass snake is it not? I always thought they were quite small critters

Maybe you need to carry a mouse with you in future Natasha? :

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage...cle1787342.ece

Some strange things are happening to our eco-system these days. Creatures are going beyond their normal habitats and breaking their living patterns. I heard about a salmon in the Rhine that was trying to spawn. A strange 3 meter fish specimen was also found in the Rhine. There are other reports of insects and sea creatures popping up in strange places. These are probably indications of climate change.

Colonel Boris could probably tell us of strange happenings in the bird world.

Could it have been a slow worm : http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anguis_fragilis

I came across one of these chaps/chapesses outside my place (Kloten area). They're harmless but I honestly thought it was a snake - big b*gger - I guess you didn't hang around long enough to get a close look

eww! gross

I am such a wimp

we saw one yesterday in the 'elephant' forest near Witikon (down the hill towards klusplatz)...

Ours was only a baby - maybe 8 inches long and about as skinny as a pencil - or I suppose it could have been a 'legless' lizard - do they have them here - It was sunning itself on the new road they have put in near the forest (ready for new apartment blocks) - off waserstrasse.

Had a bit of darker colour on its back but mostly brown all over - in fact, if it was Australia I'd say it was a hatchling...definitely this 'season'.

So yes, there are snakes about - probably catching the last of the warmer weather before real winter comes..

Ours raised it's head when it saw us and definitely poked out a forked tongue.

Checked quickly online and there are four sub-species of viper that are found in switzerland and are poisonous - treatment for bite is generally stay calm, place limb in sling or splint if you have to walk for help, or else stay put and get medical assistance. Just skimming seems that bites are rarely fatal to adults, and some children may need anti-venom treatment which is readily available at the large local hospitals (eg. Zurich)...

http://www.reptiles.de/English/Kinds...witzerland.htm

Also noted from wikipedia is that vipers tend to be nocturnal...

Yes, snakes do like water and can swim - they like to cool off in the water on hot days too...

Yeah, cannot say I hung around to check out if it had ears or not.

Could have been?

It was a fair bit longer than 50 cm though.

Mimi: mouse > snake

Ah good point, plenty of snakes in Aus, many of them rather nasty I believe.

Sorry Tash, it was probably a water snake...

I actually sat down to lunch by a pond about 2 months ago, was watching a frog minding its own business on a grassy/reedy floating area, then a snake come up beneath it and snaffled it in one fell swoop!

Was quite spectacular i have to say...never seen anything like it that wasn't Attenborough pre-approved.

LOL! So am I but would have run a mile and not put up a fight regardless

Who'd have thought Switzerland had so many scary animals............talking of which I came across the giant spiders that form balls and roll towards you. I promise they are suitably scary <shudder>.

Giant spiders invading Switzerland

Sorry, bad Mel

Ok now I'm introducing a 'tucking my pants in my socks' zone around Zurich. I hate anything bigger than a earthworm so those discussed here....yukky duck big time

I don't mind what it was: I was just perplexed for the next 6kms of my run (so I literally did run a mile Mimi :P) as to what a snake was doing sunning itself at this time of the year

hats off to you girlie....far braver than me (and fitter probably )

Just be sure to tell everyone in 10 years time that it was at least 5 meters long and the head the size of a rugy ball

Almost trod on one whilst walking a long a tiny brook at the end of Summer 2007, probably about a meter long as it slithered in front of me right into the brook. Does seems a bit late in the year for yours, but mild temperatures the last few days.

Yay - thanks for the picture of the 'slow-worm' - this is definitely what we saw on our walk - I am impressed at myself for thinking it 'wasn't a snake' - in fact, my daughter was the one who spotted it and instantly called it a 'legless lizard' rather than a snake.

My kids have pretty good experience with reptiles in Australia - their grandpa has a 3 metre carpet python, 8 bearded dragons, 6 water dragons, tree frogs, four different species of turtle, and a whole lot more (and a reptile licence too! in Aust - and he even gets the rescued reptiles these days)...

We don't find reptiles icky at all, in fact, they are quite intelligent and the turtles are particularly fun to keep - they recognise the family members and come over hoping for food...

At home I also have an eel that lives in a pond in the backyard - caught it when I was 14 down the local creek after a big flood... I'm 32 now - so the eel is about 20 years at least - apparrently they can live for 100 years!