This specimen was discovered by the Spring 2013 Herpetology Class at DNWR. The snake was not captured it was simply photographed.
| The copperhead is a medium sized snake that reaches a maximum length of less than 6 feet. The sub-species found in the Mississippi Delta is the southern copperhead, Agkistrodon contortrix contortrix. They are generally pale red to pink with a distinctive hour-glass pattern on their sides. The hour-glass is often broken at the mid-dorsum on southern copperheads but isn't in the one shown here. The southern copperhead inhabits a wide range of habitats from lowland river floodplains to hilly regions. Copperheads eat a wide variety of prey including mice, birds, amphibians, lizards, other snakes (see the bite marks on the head?), and even insects. Like the cottonmouth, copperheads deliver venom through the two fangs located at the top of the mouth. Their venom is also a Hemotoxin which destroys red blood cells, disrupts blood clotting, and causes tissue and organ damage. Bites from vipers are very painful and potentially fatal so they should be taken very seriously; SEEK MEDICAL ATTENTION immediately if you are bitten by a viperid snake. You should never attempt to capture A. contortrix contortrix unless properly trained and have the proper safety equipment. | This specimen was discovered by the Spring 2013 Herpetology Class at DNWR. The snake was not captured it was simply photographed. |