Some useful info on snakes and copperheads

[SouthernZ]

Hi there,

I found an old thread here a few days ago about copperhead snakes and decided to post, but instead of that I think it would be more productive to just make a new topic.

Anyway I've written a detailed article about copperhead snakes that some of you may find very useful while your out and about near the woods. I'm the proud owner of two snakes of my own and I herp (look for reptiles) on a regular basis.

It's not a copperhead! Stop killing hognose snakes.

I hope that you find it to be useful and informative, and if you have any questions just post them.

Thank you

[RPMDAD]

Originally Posted by SouthernZ

Hi there,

I found an old thread here a few days ago about copperhead snakes and decided to post, but instead of that I think it would be more productive to just make a new topic.

Anyway I've written a detailed article about copperhead snakes that some of you may find very useful while your out and about near the woods. I'm the proud owner of two snakes of my own and I herp (look for reptiles) on a regular basis.

It's not a copperhead! Stop killing hognose snakes.

I hope that you find it to be useful and informative, and if you have any questions just post them.

Thank you

Excellent post SouthernZ........

[saggy (Premo)]

Originally Posted by SouthernZ

Hi there,

I found an old thread here a few days ago about copperhead snakes and decided to post, but instead of that I think it would be more productive to just make a new topic.

Anyway I've written a detailed article about copperhead snakes that some of you may find very useful while your out and about near the woods. I'm the proud owner of two snakes of my own and I herp (look for reptiles) on a regular basis.

It's not a copperhead! Stop killing hognose snakes.

I hope that you find it to be useful and informative, and if you have any questions just post them.

Thank you

This was a very good article. I have been having trouble with baby snakes getting into my pool. They get into the skimmer and they try to strike at me and I can't get them out alive. They look like copperheads but they are around 4-6 inches long and so little you can't tell what they are. Do you know how to tell on a baby snake if they are copperheads? Their heads are so small and I usually find one new one in the skimmer daily for about a week. They tend to come in spurts. Any info would help-yes the pool is by the woods and in the critical area so I've even found new baby crabs that birds have dropped in my pool.

[SouthernZ]

Originally Posted by saggy

This was a very good article. I have been having trouble with baby snakes getting into my pool. They get into the skimmer and they try to strike at me and I can't get them out alive. They look like copperheads but they are around 4-6 inches long and so little you can't tell what they are. Do you know how to tell on a baby snake if they are copperheads? Their heads are so small and I usually find one new one in the skimmer daily for about a week. They tend to come in spurts. Any info would help-yes the pool is by the woods and in the critical area so I've even found new baby crabs that birds have dropped in my pool.

They are most likely water snakes, some subspecies of water snake have a pattern on their backs that can slightly resemble a copperhead, and they have a well documented reputation for striking when you encounter them up-close. They are totally harmless though and aside from getting a little pin-prick of a bite, they can't hurt you.

Also copperheads in general are not exactly known to be good swimmers.

You can remove them safely by getting some moderately thick work gloves, or the equivalent, and gently transport them back into the wooded area. Their tiny teeth will not be a be able to get through, and even if they did it would not be a major cause for concern.

One way to tell if a baby snake is a copperhead is to look closely at the tip of the tail, baby copperheads have a bright yellowish-orange tip on their tails. Below is an image of a juvenile copperhead:

What about when it is a copperhead?

I did touch on that in the article, and the answer is to leave it alone. They are not aggressive and the odds of you getting bitten are practically 0% unless you step on it, try to catch it, or try to kill it. The safest practice is to not disturb it.

-SZ