A legless lizard native to Europe: neither a worm nor a snake. Unlike snakes, it has eyelids it can close. It spends much of its time hidden under objects, and it can shed its tail to escape a predator, though the tail regrows only as a short stub.
Quick answers
What is it?Reptile
Carnivore?Yes
Dangerous?No
Domesticated?No
Awake when?Day & night
Hibernates?Yes
It spends the winter months in an underground burrow.
Kept as a pet?No
Do people eat it?No
At a glance
Found inEurope, Asia
HabitatGrassland, Towns
ColoursBrown, Grey, Gold
SizeSmall
LengthMostly 40–45 cm; up to 57.5 cm
LegsNone
Covered inScales
Lives alone
Lives for20–30 years
In the wild
- Where it lives
- Western, northern and central Europe; closely related slow worms reach eastern Europe and western Asia.
- What it eats
- Mainly slugs, snails and earthworms.
Did you know
Not a worm or a snake but a legless lizard, and it can blink.
It may be the longest-living lizard: about 30 years in the wild, and one lived 54 years at Copenhagen Zoo.
Its young are born inside a thin, transparent egg membrane, which they break out of straight away.
Often confused with
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