Cenchris contortrix Natural history
- THOMPSON M,
Florida museum of natural history's guide to florida's venomous snakes
Southern copperhead
Copperhead, Highland Moccasin, Chunkhead
Scientific name: Agkistrodon contortrix contortrix.
Description: Average adult size is 22-36 inches (56-91 cm), record is 53 inches (135 cm). A stout-bodied snake with broad, light brown to gray crossbands, alternating with dark brown to reddish-brown crossbands. Constrictions along the backbone give the dark bands an hourglass shape. On the sides of the body the dark bands usually have light centers, and occasionally one dark spot. Southern copperheads sometimes have an overall pinkish tint. The top of head in front of the eyes is covered with large plate-like scales. The pupil is elliptical, a catlike vertical slit. There is a deep facial pit between the nostril and the eye. Juvenile color is similar to that of adults, except that the tail of new born copperheads is bright sulfur yellow. Copperhead: Left to right: Top of the head (notice the large plate-like scales on the top of the head); underside of the head (chin and throat). Copperhead: Left to right: Side of the head (notice the facial pit between the eye a nd the nostril); front (face view) of the head.
Range: In Florida, this snake occurs only in the panhandle, primarily along the Apalachicola River and its tributaries, and then in the western tip of the panhandle. The FLMNH has specimens in its collections from Jackson, Liberty, Gadsden, Calhoun, Gulf, and Escambia counties. The range might extend to other nearby areas, but there are no confirmed Florida records from outside these counties. Outside Florida, the species ranges north to Massachusetts, and west to Texas and southeastern Nebraska.
Habitat: The preferred habitat is low, wet areas around swamps, stream beds, river bottoms, and damp ravines, but it also occurs on the hillsides above the wet areas. It also is found in suburban neighborhoods near people.
Comments: This beautiful snake is often confused with juvenile cottonmouths. If you found one in Florida outside the Apalachicola River valley or the extreme western end of the panhandle, chances are you have a young Cottonmouth and not a Copperhead. Copperheads are often reported from south Florida, and the people who found them become quite belligerent when their mistake is pointed out. The two species are easy to distinguish because the dark bars on juvenile Cottonmouths have numerous dark spots and speckles in them, while the dark bars on the Copperhead have no dark spots or at most only one. Also the eye of the Copperhead is not obscured by the dark facial band typical of the Cottonmouth. Hatchling copperheads hold the tail erect and wiggle the yellow tip like a caterpillar to attract prey within striking range. Copperhead bites are extremely painful but usually are not life-threatening for healthy adults. They can be dangerous to children or older citizens in poor health. As with all poisonous snakebites, the victim should seek immediate medical care from a physician or hospital experienced in treating snakebite.
Agkistrodon contortrix
Homoeopathic name and abbreviation: Cenchris contortrix; Cench.
Synonyms: Trigonocephalus contortrix
Common names: Southern copperhead
Description: Copper coloured bands
Distribution: Southern USA
Range: USA, southeastern Virginia and southern Indiana south to the Gulf of Mexico and westward to central Texas.
Venom: Its venom is not very potent but bites do occur.
Authority: Lacepede, 1789.
Comments: Is often used in religious ceremonies by members of snake-handling cults. The cottonmouth and copperheads are the most primitively developed of the pit vipers.
Five subspecies exist.
(T F Allen)
Florida museum of natural history's guide to florida's venomous snakes
Southern copperhead
Copperhead, Highland Moccasin, Chunkhead
Scientific name: Agkistrodon contortrix contortrix.
Description: Average adult size is 22-36 inches (56-91 cm), record is 53 inches (135 cm). A stout-bodied snake with broad, light brown to gray crossbands, alternating with dark brown to reddish-brown crossbands. Constrictions along the backbone give the dark bands an hourglass shape. On the sides of the body the dark bands usually have light centers, and occasionally one dark spot. Southern copperheads sometimes have an overall pinkish tint. The top of head in front of the eyes is covered with large plate-like scales. The pupil is elliptical, a catlike vertical slit. There is a deep facial pit between the nostril and the eye. Juvenile color is similar to that of adults, except that the tail of new born copperheads is bright sulfur yellow. Copperhead: Left to right: Top of the head (notice the large plate-like scales on the top of the head); underside of the head (chin and throat). Copperhead: Left to right: Side of the head (notice the facial pit between the eye a nd the nostril); front (face view) of the head.
Range: In Florida, this snake occurs only in the panhandle, primarily along the Apalachicola River and its tributaries, and then in the western tip of the panhandle. The FLMNH has specimens in its collections from Jackson, Liberty, Gadsden, Calhoun, Gulf, and Escambia counties. The range might extend to other nearby areas, but there are no confirmed Florida records from outside these counties. Outside Florida, the species ranges north to Massachusetts, and west to Texas and southeastern Nebraska.
Habitat: The preferred habitat is low, wet areas around swamps, stream beds, river bottoms, and damp ravines, but it also occurs on the hillsides above the wet areas. It also is found in suburban neighborhoods near people.
Comments: This beautiful snake is often confused with juvenile cottonmouths. If you found one in Florida outside the Apalachicola River valley or the extreme western end of the panhandle, chances are you have a young Cottonmouth and not a Copperhead. Copperheads are often reported from south Florida, and the people who found them become quite belligerent when their mistake is pointed out. The two species are easy to distinguish because the dark bars on juvenile Cottonmouths have numerous dark spots and speckles in them, while the dark bars on the Copperhead have no dark spots or at most only one. Also the eye of the Copperhead is not obscured by the dark facial band typical of the Cottonmouth. Hatchling copperheads hold the tail erect and wiggle the yellow tip like a caterpillar to attract prey within striking range. Copperhead bites are extremely painful but usually are not life-threatening for healthy adults. They can be dangerous to children or older citizens in poor health. As with all poisonous snakebites, the victim should seek immediate medical care from a physician or hospital experienced in treating snakebite.
Agkistrodon contortrix
Homoeopathic name and abbreviation: Cenchris contortrix; Cench.
Synonyms: Trigonocephalus contortrix
Common names: Southern copperhead
Description: Copper coloured bands
Distribution: Southern USA
Range: USA, southeastern Virginia and southern Indiana south to the Gulf of Mexico and westward to central Texas.
Venom: Its venom is not very potent but bites do occur.
Authority: Lacepede, 1789.
Comments: Is often used in religious ceremonies by members of snake-handling cults. The cottonmouth and copperheads are the most primitively developed of the pit vipers.
Five subspecies exist.
(T F Allen)
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