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Southern Copperhead

Agkistrodon contortrix contortrix

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32.9731, -85.7454

Field Notes

Description:

Spotted in a fallen pine tree about 50 meters from the Tallapoosa River in Horseshoe Bend National Military Park, Alabama.

This individual is a juvenile. Not sure of the exact age, but it would have to be less than 2 years old, as juvenile copperheads have yellow tails until around 2.

Habitat:

Copperheads prefer terrestrial to semi-aquatic habitats, which include rocky-forested hillsides and various wetlands

Notes:

Copperheads are venomous, but their venom has the lowest potency of all pit vipers. They are not actively aggressive and their bites are never fatal.

The copperhead is listed as Endangered in Iowa and Massachusetts and is a species of Special Concern in New Jersey.

Reference Links:

Agkistrodon contortrix contortrix (Linnaeus, 1766), Agkistrodon contortrix

Species ID Suggestions

Comments (9)
marylou.wildlife
Awesome!! Thanks Lisa! And your blog is wonderful. I honestly had no idea there were so many medical advantages provided by snakes... so cool!
LisaPowers
Congratulations! Your photo has been featured in today’s blog, Snakes! It had to be snakes! http://blog.projectnoah.org/
marylou.wildlife
Yes, it is definitely better to view their beauty from a little distance! However, I have never run into an aggressive one... they just have such bad reputations.
marylou.wildlife
Haha, yea I believe this one had recently eaten... the body was quite lumpy

Spotted for Missions

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Snakes of the Southeast U.S.
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Reptiles of the World
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Snakes of the World
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Snakes of the United States - Center for Snake Conservation
Photographed
PublishedAugust 10, 2011

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