First two photos are at the south end of Catfish Pond at Camp Mohican in the DWGNRA.  I had just taken a short walk on a trail located behind the Mohican Outdoor Center Lodge, which gives the visitor some beautiful views overlooking a wetland area.  I always finish this visit by following the stream up to the southern end of Catfish Pond which offers beautiful views of the pond and also interesting opportunities to view wildlife and wetlands fauna!  WELL, I ran into Mr. Copperhead, laying quietly on a nice flat rock, amid grasses, right next to where the pond’s water empties into a small stream leading to the wetlands that I had just been looking at.  *** This is an area where you look first and plant your feet second due to wet spots etc.,*** I am glad I was looking, because I would have either missed him completely or possibly stepped on him.  By the time I noticed him I was pretty close, BUT, he didn’t seem disturbed, I got my photos and when I left he was still enjoying his rock!  NOTE:  This is a beautiful area, ANY TIME OF YEAR!!!  It is one of my favorite FALL VISITS, first the wetland areas colors are really special!!  AND THEN you have a totally different scenario at the end of the Pond!!  Plus your entire trip is less than a quarter mile!!

Photos three and four.  Pennsylvania side of the Delaware Water Gap in DWGNRA.  We were coming to the end of a great hike, had followed the AT (Appalachian Trail) from the parking lot up to the summit of Mount Minsi and then returned by the old service road.  We are almost to the parking lot and we come across this Copperhead just slithering through the brush just off the road.  Cameras started clicking and he just kept on moving!!

NOTE:  When finished reading the information below about Copperheads and the Pit Viper Family, please refer back to the photos again, lOOK FOR – the tell-tale descriptions given below!  Look carefully for vertical pupil in the eyes, the pit between the eyes and nose, head wider than neck AND the COLORS!!  These are important distinctions that will help you verify the ID between poisonous vs non-poisonous snakes!!  AND always follow the common sense rule of “Look – Don’t Touch any Wildlife!!”

Copperheads are members of the Pit Viper Family. 

Description and Breeding:  They range in size is 22 to 53 inches in length.  Stout bodied; copper, orange or pink tinge with bold chestnut or reddish brown crossbands constricted on the midline of back.  Top of head is unmarked.  Facial pit between eye and nostril.  They bear live young, breeding from spring to fall, peak mating April to May.  1 to 14 young, 7-10inches long.  The young are born August to early October and mature in 2-3 years.

Habitat and Range:  Wooded hillsides with rock outcrops above streams or ponds, edges of swamps and periodically flooded areas in coastal plain.  They range from SW Massachusetts west to extreme SE Nebraska south to Florida Panhandle and SC W Texas.  They bask during Spring and Fall, becoming nocturnal as the days get warmer.  Favored Summer retreats are stonewalls, piles of debris near abandoned farms, sawdust heaps and rotting logs and large flat stones near streams.  They feed on small rodents, lizards, frogs large caterpillars and cicadas.  In fall Copperheads return to their den site, often a rock outcrop on a hillside with a southern or eastern exposure.  While their bites are painful, they are rarely pose a serious threat to life!!

The Pit Viper Family is worldwide and includes about 290 species of dangerously poisonous snakes.  Seventeen of the 19 venomous snakes in our range belong to Viperidae.  They are represented by 3 genera – Agkistrodon, the copperheads and cottonmouths, and Crotalus and Sistrurus, the rattlesankes.  Most of these in our area are stout-bodied, with heads distinctly wider than the neck and patterned with blotches or crossbands.  They have recurved, retractable hollow fangs situated near the front of the upper jaw.  Normally folded back along the jaw, the fangs are rapidly swung forward as the mouth is opened to strike.  A heat sensitive pit, used to locate warm blooded prey, is present on each side of the head between the eye and nostril.  Viperids also have eyes with vertical pupils and an undivided row of scales under the tail.  Rattlesnakes bear a distinctive rattle on their tail.  This unique structure is a series of flattened, interlocking dry horny segments that produce a buzzing noise when shaken vigorously.  A new segment is added each time the snake sheds its skin, normally 2 to 4 times each year.  Viperids appear to be the most highly evolved snakes, organized for capturing, killing and ingesting relatively large warm-blooded prey.  Their venom is a complex mixture of proteins, which acts primarily on a victim’s blood tissue.  Extreme caution is advised – even ‘road kills’ have been known to bite!!  Most viperids are nocturnal and most bear their young alive.

Enjoy Your Open Space

Charlie Fineran

Director Open Space
Allamuchy Township Environmental Commission – Chairman
Allamuchy Historical Society – President