In the landscape.
Plants & places
Wooded slopes, rock cover and woodland edges throughout western North Carolina.
A sensible first response
This species is venomous. Admire it from a distance, keep pets away and leave its route clear. Never approach a snake to test an identification.
When to look
Photographed in October; active during suitable warm weather from spring into autumn.
Identification
The stout body has repeated brown hourglass crossbands that narrow over the spine and widen down the sides, on a pale tan-gray ground. These visible marks support copperhead, consistent with the filename. The partly obscured head is not the basis of the identification.
Lookalikes & limits
Juvenile ratsnakes and watersnakes have different blotch or band proportions. A triangular-looking head alone is not a reliable field test.
In the garden
A native predator within woodland food webs, taking small animals.