Copperhead

Agkistrodon contortrix

Copperheads, like rattlesnakes and the Cottonmouth, belong to the pit viper family. With their hollow fangs, deep facial heat-sensing pits between the nostrils and the eyes, and vertical pupils, they are superbly designed for sit-and-wait, low-light hunting. A pit viper will wait along a rodent or shrew trail -- sometimes for days -- until supper comes along. At night, its heat sensors detect the prey and guide the strike.

Look For : A snake with an unmarked coppery, orange, or rusty-red head. Series of brown to reddish- brown dumbbell- or hourglass-shaped saddles on body.

Length : 24-53".

Habitat : Rocky wooded hillsides, swamp edges, pine woods, near canyon springs.

Range : From central New England west to extreme southeastern Nebraska, south to Florida panhandle through south-central Texas.