An Eastern Copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix), a venomous snake, is coiled on a bed of dry brown leaves. Photo credit: Jackson Prosser.

Eastern Copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix) – Venomous

An Eastern Copperhead, Agkistrodon contortrix, a venomous snake with a light brown, dark hourglass-patterned body, is coiled on dry, leaf-littered ground.
An Eastern Copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix), a venomous snake, eats a green insect while lying on the ground among rocks and pine needles.
Close-up of an Eastern Copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix) with a vertical pupil, showing detailed texture of its venomous head and body. Photo by Jackson Prosser.
A juvenile Eastern Copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix), a venomous snake, camouflages among pine needles with its yellow-tipped tail highlighted by a red arrow.
A light brown and tan patterned Eastern Copperhead, a venomous snake, lies coiled on a bed of dry pine needles and leaves.
A grayscale map shows the southeastern United States, highlighting regions where the venomous Eastern Copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix) is found, with a shaded area covering southern Georgia and northern Florida.

Description:  The Eastern Copperhead is a medium-sized pit viper typically measuring 2-3 ft (0.6-09 m) in length, though large specimens may exceed 4 ft (1.2 m). The body is relatively heavy with a distinct, triangular head, though not an identifying characteristic. Heat sensing pits are found between the eyes and the nostrils, which are specialized for detecting warm blooded prey items. Body coloration is light brown to tan, marked by 10-18 darker, hourglass shaped crossbands that are narrow along the spine and widen towards the belly. These bands often resemble a Hershey’s kiss when viewed from the side. The head is a solid copper to red color, a key identification feature, lacking the spear-point markings common in sympatric, non-venomous snakes such as corn snakes. The belly is lightly mottled brown, not boldly checkered like corn snakes. Scales are keeled, giving the snake a rough texture. Young copperheads are born with a bright yellow tail tip, which they use as a caudal lure to attract frogs and lizards.

Range and Habitats:  They are found throughout much of the eastern United States, from southern New England westward to Illinois and south through the southeastern states including South Carolina and Georgia. It occupies a wide variety of habitats, including hardwood forests, mixed pine hardwood stands, old fields, and rocky hillsides. Copperheads are tolerant of moderate human disturbance and are sometimes common in urban parks and suburban lots.

Habits:  Copperheads are primarily crepuscular (active at dawn and dusk), though seasonal variation is pronounced where they are diurnal in spring and fall but shift to nocturnal activity during hot summer months. They spend daylight hours concealed under logs, leaf litter, rocks, or artificial cover. In cooler months, they bask near hibernacula on sunny days and retreat underground during winter.

Copperheads are ambush predators that rely heavily on camouflage and chemoreception. They often strike and release prey, trailing the envenomated animal using strike induced chemosensory searching. Their diet is broad, consisting of small mammals, birds, frogs, lizards, and insects (especially cicada). Ontogenetic diet shifts are documented, with juveniles taking more ectothermic prey such as frogs and lizards, and adults focusing on rodents and birds.

Reproduction occurs in late summer to early fall, which is when surface activity generally peaks. Copperheads are ovoviviparous, giving birth to live young rather than laying eggs. Females produce litters of 4-15 neonates, each 8-10 in (20-25 cm) long, often born in sheltered sites near rotting logs or rock crevices. Females may remain near birthing sites after having young until the neonates disperse.

Neonates possess the yellow tail tip, which fades with age. They twitch their tails in worm-like motions to draw prey within striking distance. This behavior is so deeply ingrained that even late-term fetuses exhibit caudal luring tail movements before birth, suggesting the behavior develops prenatally as an important survival adaptation.

Copperheads are mid-level predators that play an important role in regulating rodent and bird populations. Their predators in the southeast include kingsnakes, raptors, wild turkeys, raccoons, coyotes, etc. Copperheads are often more abundant in areas where kingsnakes have declined, suggesting strong top-down population control by kingsnakes.

Venom and Bites:  Copperheads possess hemotoxic venom, which attacks blood cells and tissue. Their venom is relatively mild compared to other North American vipers, but bites can still cause significant pain, swelling, bruising, and local tissue necrosis. A review of envenomation’s in the Carolinas found most bites were mild to moderate; only 6% were classified as severe, and no fatalities were reported. Common symptoms include pain, swelling, and fang marks. Envenomation should be treated with antivenin. Because of their cryptic coloration, bites often occur when copperheads are accidentally stepped on.

First Aid Protocol: If bitten by a copperhead, first move away from the snake and do not attempt to catch or kill it. Call emergency services immediately and keep as calm and still as possible, since physical activity can accelerate venom spread. If the bite is on a limb, immobilize it and keep it at or slightly below heart level. Remove rings, watches, or tight clothing before swelling begins, and never apply a tourniquet or attempt to cut the wound.

Conservation Status:  Copperheads are widespread and locally abundant throughout their range and are currently listed as a species of Least Concern. They are not legally protected in Georgia or South Carolina. However, populations can experience significant local declines due to road mortality, habitat loss and degradation, and human persecution – particularly in the Southeast where urbanization is extensive.

Pertinent References:

  • Carrasco-Harris, B., C. Guyer, and C.J. Jenkins. 2020. Copperheads in the city: Spatial ecology of Agkistrodon contortrix in an urban landscape. Urban Ecosystems 23:1121-1132.
  • J. Whitfield Gibbons, & Dorcas, M. E. (2005). Snakes of the Southeast. University of Georgia Press.
  • Greenbaum, E. 2004. The influence of prey-scent stimuli on predatory behavior of the North American copperhead Agkistrodon contortrix. Behavioral Ecology 15:345-350.
  • Gross, I.P. 2017. Habitat use, dispersal, and hibernation of maternal and neonatal copperheads (Agkistrodon contortrix) in a managed southeastern forest. M.S. Thesis, Alabama A&M University, Normal, Alabama.
  • Kudo, K., and A.T. Tu. 2001. Characterization of hyaluronidase isolated from Agkistrodon contortrix contortrix (Southern Copperhead) venom. Archives of Biochemistry and Biophysics 386:154-162.
  • Sanders, D.H., and J.S. Jacob. 1981. Thermal ecology of the copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix). Journal of Herpetology 15:425-428.
  • Schuett, G.W., and C.F. Smith. 2022. Tail movements by late-term fetal pitvipers resemble caudal luring: Prenatal development of an ambush foraging adaptation. Biological Journal of the Linnean Society 135:1-12.
  • Sutton, W.B., J.T. Anderson, C.M. Heaton, and C.E. Harper. 2017. Spatial ecology of the copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix) in a managed forest. Herpetologica 73:99-110.
  • Thorson, A., E.J. Lavonas, A.M. Rouse, and W.P. Kerns II. 2003. Copperhead envenomations in the Carolinas. Journal of Toxicology: Clinical Toxicology 41:29-35.