Eastern Copperhead
Agkistrodon contortrix • Order: Squamata, Suborder: Serpentes, Family: Viperidae, Subfamily: Crotalinae, Genus: Agkistrodon, Species: A. contortrix
Found throughout the eastern and central United States, ranging from Massachusetts south to northern Florida, and west to Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas.
Look up Eastern Copperhead in the Snake Encyclopedia →Family
Order: Squamata, Suborder: Serpentes, Family: Viperidae, Subfamily: Crotalinae, Genus: Agkistrodon, Species: A. contortrix
Conservation
IUCN Red List status is Least Concern, due to a wide distribution and generally stable populations, though local populations face threats from habitat fragmentation and road mortality.
Physical Description
Features distinctive hourglass- or dumbbell-shaped crossbands that are lighter gray/tan bordered by darker margins over a pale brown to reddish-brown background. The head is broad, triangular, and distinct from the neck, with vertical pupils and heat-sensing pits between the eye and nostril.
Size & Dimensions
Specimens typically range from 50 to 90 cm (20 to 35 inches) in total length, with maximum recorded lengths reaching approximately 135 cm (53 inches). This individual appears to be a subadult or adult coiled tightly.
Habitat
Ininhabits deciduous forests, mixed woodlands, rocky hillsides, wetland edges, and scrublands. Often associated with rock outcrops, decaying logs, and leaf litter. Elevation ranges from sea level to over 1,500 meters.
Diet & Feeding
Diet consists primarily of small rodents, lizards, amphibians, birds, and large insects like cicadas. They are ambush predators that rely on camouflage to surprise passing prey.
Reproduction
Ovoviviparous species giving birth to live young. Mating typically occurs in spring or autumn, with females producing litters ranging from 1 to 21 young (average 4 to 7) in late summer or early autumn.
Look-alikes
Often confused with young cottonmouths, eastern hog-nosed snakes, or northern water snakes due to similar patterned coloration, but the distinct hourglass markings on the body and facial pits differentiate copperheads.
Conservation Status
IUCN Red List status is Least Concern, due to a wide distribution and generally stable populations, though local populations face threats from habitat fragmentation and road mortality.
Cultural Significance
Plays an important ecological role in controlling rodent and pest populations within its native forest and woodland ecosystems.
Notable Features
Famous for its specialized pit organs located between the eye and nostril, allowing the snake to detect infrared radiation (heat) emitted by warm-blooded prey in total darkness.