Eastern Slow-worm

Eastern Slow-worm

Anguis colchica

Silhouette: Steven Traver · PhyloPic

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
at Kazan

In 3 days ~10% in a week ~30%

6 Verified sightings at Kazan
67 In all 3 parks From 2019 to 2026
June Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Eastern Slow-worm

Anguis colchica, the eastern slow worm, is a species of legless lizard in the family Anguidae found in eastern and northern Europe and Asia. It is easily confused with the common slow worm, due to their physical similarities, and the proximity of their distribution.

The eastern slow worm is part of the slow worm species complex. It was traditionally written as A. f. colchica, a subspecies of the common slow worm, but was later distinguished as a separate species, along with Anguis graeca, Anguis veronensis and Anguis cephalonnica.

Eastern slow worms live primarily in areas with partially closed, forest or shrub vegetation. They can be found most often on the edges of forests, forest clearings, and sometimes on tourist trails, where they can lie down to bask in the sun. They utilise stone piles, stone fences, coarse woody debris, and even the burrows of some rodents as hiding places. They commonly venture into gardens close to their habitat.

Eastern slow worms are mostly crepuscular animals, but are sometimes found to be active during the daytime, especially after rain. Their diet consists of small, slow moving invertebrates such as earthworms... Wikipedia →

Sounds

Recording0:04

Russia · 2024

© fedascheva · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Białowieża National Park 🇵🇱 Poland
~50%
2 Biebrza National Park 🇵🇱 Poland
~30%
3 Tatra National Park 🇸🇰 Slovakia
~20%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Istanbul 🇹🇷 Turkey
~20%
2 Helsinki 🇫🇮 Finland
~10%
3 Kyiv 🇺🇦 Ukraine
~10%
4 Kazan 🇷🇺 Russia
<5%

Zoos & Centres Where Found

# Zoo / Centre Country
1 Minsk Zoo 🇧🇾 Belarus In captivity
2 Дэльфінарый 🇧🇾 Belarus In captivity

Closest Relatives at Kazan

No species of the same family or order lives in Kazan, so these are its closest relatives here: other reptiles.

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing an Eastern Slow-worm in Kazan?

Rare

Under 5% of wildlife watchers report an Eastern Slow-worm sighting in Kazan on a given day, based on 6 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. Over three days the chance rises to about 10%, and over a week to about 30%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see an Eastern Slow-worm in Kazan?

May–June and September

In those months about 10% of wildlife watchers report an Eastern Slow-worm in Kazan on a given day, against under 5% in July–August and October–April, the lowest months.

What time of day is best to see an Eastern Slow-worm?

Between noon and 3 pm

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Eastern Slow-worm sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Is Kazan the best place to see an Eastern Slow-worm?

4th of 4

Of the 4 cities where we can rate Eastern Slow-worm sightings, Kazan ranks 4th at under 5%. The best odds are in Istanbul (Turkey, about 20%), Helsinki (Finland, about 10%) and Kyiv (Ukraine, about 10%).

Where does the Eastern Slow-worm sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Eastern Slow-worm is recorded against all the reptiles logged in Kazan (6 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.

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