DAILY SENTINEL (Pomeroy, Ohio) 09 September 08 Clifton copperhead (Beth Sergent)
Photo at URL below: Bill Hammack of Clifton takes hold of a copperhead snake he recently found near his home which measured just under 32 inches. A spokesperson for the WVDNR said it is unusual to find copperheads longer than two feet. (Beth Sergent)
Clifton, W.Va: Bill Hammack of Clifton wasn't surprised to find a copperhead on his property recently but he was surprised to find one nearly 32 inches long.
Hammack said he found the snake resting on a log and knew it was unusual to find one that large. Hammack has been collecting local snakes for awhile and says he has “snakes longer than you.”
Hammack said he guessed the snake to be around six pounds and measured 31 and three-quarter inches long. He turned the copperhead into the local office of the West Virginia Department of Natural Resources which in turn is sending it to Jim Fregonara, wildlife biologist with the WVDNR in Elkins in Randolph County.
Fregonara said it is unusual to find a copperhead longer than two feet long which appears to an average length for adults though they can grow to three feet, but “those are pretty rare,” he added.
Fregonara said he'd add the Clifton copperhead to his collection of other snakes native to West Virginia for presentations he gives that assist people in how to identify those native snakes. Fregonara said people often confuse copperheads with milk snakes that tend to live closer to houses but also have banding patterns on their backs.
Fregonara said copperheads have dark bands on their backs that make it appear the snake is wearing saddlebags or as if “an hourglass has been bent across its back.” He added that people also confuse juvenile black rat snakes and black racer snakes with copperheads.
Fregonara said the biggest misconception about copperheads is that they are aggressive and added bites are actually rare in West Virginia.
“Snakes only bite when they are hungry and kill prey or if it feels threatened,” he said. “Leave it alone and it's not going to bite you. Usually when people get bit they're trying to kill it.”
Fregonara said nobody has died from a copperhead bite in West Virginia for at least 40 or 50 years though if you get bit, you will likely require medical treatment.
Copperheads are widespread in West Virginia unlike the timber rattlesnake which is the state's other venomous snake but they aren't as prevalent. Copperheads prefer making their homes on remote, rocky hillsides and as for that old wives tale of copperheads preferring to hang around berry bushes, Fregonara said it hasn't been scientifically proven but he's heard similar stories.
As for Hammack's copperhead, it preferred a log near the Ohio River.
Clifton copperhead