Kent village is ‘invaded’ by rare breed of wall lizard normally only found living in hotter central and southern Europe
- A retired salesman found ‘alien’ wall lizards living in the back garden of his home
- Albert Marshall, 70, realised the creatures were tamer than native lizards are
- Wall lizards are a protected species in their native central and southern Europe
A retired salesman told of his surprise to find ‘alien’ lizards basking in the sunshine in his back garden in Cuxton, Kent.
Albert Marshall, 70, explained the non-native wall lizards are much tamer than our native species, have even allowed neighbours to feed them with a spoon and are not as scared as other species which tend to hide in the rocks in his back garden.
In its native habitat in southern and central Europe it is a protected species, but the lizards have made themselves at home on the Kent coast for more than 30 years after several were reportedly dumped by a pet shop owner illegally.
The lizards are known to live along the Kent coast with several spotted in Cuxton recently
Mr Marshall said: ‘Suddenly these green lizards have appeared in the garden in the last month.
‘I’d seen the normal lizards scurrying around the garden but it has only been in this last year that we’ve seen the other ones.
‘I sent a picture to my wife and I said “should we be charging them rent?”
Wall lizards (right) are typically found in hotter climates in southern and central Europe. Retired salesman Albert Marshall (left) has spotted several in his back garden in Kent
‘My next door neighbour doesn’t like anything that moves and she immediately asked me how big they are. She doesn’t even like the slow worms.
‘But we have another lady on the street who has been feeding them with a spoon.
‘They tend not to be as scared as the native ones. They will sit two or three feet away from me whereas the native ones will scurry off under the stones.
‘I have a tiered garden so there are a lot of places where the native ones can hide or the green ones come out into the sun and bask in the sun.
‘I sent off a questionnaire where they wanted to know if these were popping up because they are alien to the native species.
‘I filled out a form and sent that off where they are now moving around.’
The species are named wall lizards as they are very agile and likes climbing walls, fence posts and boulders.
They are known to live along the Kent coast, including Folkestone, but sightings in other parts of Kent are rare.
There is an ongoing debate about whether the reptile has a harmful impact on native species of lizard in the UK.
Capable of growing up to 23cm long, two-thirds of which is tail, the species tend to have a more rounded snout and high eyes on the head and may also have black spots, mottling or stripes.
There are populations dotted across Britain.