Regional Meeting - Raising the profile of reptiles

The South West Regional Meeting of the ARG UK was hosted by Devon Reptile & Amphibian Group (DRAG) on the 10th December. The meeting kicked off with a county round up from the region's ARG's. Avon, Devon, Somerset and Cornwall groups gave presentations on their activities over the last year. Plenty of activity in all the region from swabbing amphibians for the Big Swab 2011, toads on roads, reptile rambles, a proposed sand lizard project, monitoring smooth snakes with the RSPB were some of the highlights of the region. 

The meeting then went into a variety of interesting talks on the national Make the Adder Count project, reptile survey methods, slow-worm translocations, Devon's elusive great crested newts, public access and reptiles, and a round up of the first three years of the Million Ponds Project. During the lunch hour the seminar of 'Raising the profile of reptiles in the South West'. The discussion was heated in the room and a variety of issues were discussed and the most important issue for reptiles were with planners and land managers. The suggestions were noted and an advice note or rather an action note will be published for the south west.

The day was finished on the prize draw of the raffle and the spot the difference quiz. All in all the day was a real success and just what can be acheived by local groups on the ground working for Amphibian & Reptile Conservation in the UK.

The next regional meeting is rumoured to be in Cornwall in 2012.

The next meeting on the calendar is the Herpetofauna Workers' Meeting in Telford - January 2012.