The sand lizard is larger than its relative the common lizard. They are stocky with short legs, blunt snouts and short tails. Females are pale grey to light brown, with a creamy white belly and a pattern of brown markings running along their back. Males are usually brown-black with a darker stripe.
Sand Lizards are present in heathland areas of the New Forest, but they are mainly restricted to the western heaths.
The male lizard changes colour in spring to a bright green. It is thought this is to attract females as part of a mating display. After basking in the sun, sand lizards hunt for prey before retiring into deep, dry sandy burrows. They use these same burrows for their annual hibernation from October to March.
Omnivore - Sand lizards mainly eat invertebrates such as slugs, spiders and insects although they also eat other foods such as fruit and flower heads.
Sand lizards became extinct in the New Forest in the 1970’s. A captive breeding programme was started by the Forestry Commission in the 1980s and they were re-introduced into suitable habitats in the 1990s.
Sand lizards are under threat from development, wildfires and lack of appropriate management leading to the growth of trees, scrub and bracken. They are particularly vulnerable to changes or harm to the warm sandy sites that they need for breeding.