A young Montpellier snake on Montjuïc emerging from the castle walls by Lucy Brzoska. I’ve yet to spot one here, but it’s always nice to know Europe’s largest snake, feisty too, might be watching us as we walk by, still living in the heart of Barcelona. 

The Montpeller is also probably the commonest snake in the Mediterranean region and in Spain. This is despite the numerous deaths on the roads to which it is attracted in search of heat, and its direct persecution by humans – it is seen as a threat to small game species and farm birds because of its fearsome size. The Montpellier aeasily adapts to humanised environs, which push out its competitor snake species. It is in theory one of the five venomous snakes in Spain, though unlike the vipers the back position of its venom fangs means poison injection is unusual, and the latter reputedly weak. This is also the case of the false smooth snake.

Culebra bastarda in Spanish, Serp verda in Catalan.