Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hey i was Wondering were copperheads usually lay there eggs at?

Ty
kyle

Copperheads are pit vipers which actually don't lay eggs. They have live births which is called ovoviviparous. Sorry for the big word. I would assume they would have their babies in a secluded place, but sometimes they may not have much of a choice(which doesn't happen very often). Hope that helped, without going into to much detail.

Matt Kauffman

Oh lol Thanks-When the mom has the babies do the babies stay with the mom or do they leave?
If they leave whats the best place to find them?

i find them road-cruising

o cool. I hope i find some soon, i Live in upstate southcarolina
so theres some here lol

Oh, they'll be near you, but they blend into the background better than a chamealon! You've probably been near many & not known it.

Matthew

Yeah Probaly so! For some reason i cant ever find any while im herping. I Hope that soon i can. I live near a Bunch of woods and a small river and a big pond. Wheres the best place to look for them?(meaning like stumps leaves)?

Thanks

All the live ones I've seen have been either on roads or in mu current living area, on my jogging/cycling trail. You will NOT see them in the woods, simply because any amount of diffuse light causes them practically to vanish.
Early dark I've seen them active. Also, I have a pic of this, one sunning after a meal during the remnants of TS Edouard. Also, see the pic below of the baby I found. That was early morning. early-mid AM after sun-up & shortly after onset of full darkness ( especially after rainstorms!) is when to find them prowling about.

Matthew

Yeah i havent ever found any in the woods. Ive heard my neibors found some babies and there mom in there garage but they killed them which if they would have called me i would have taken them and let them go somewere farther away from people. I just dont understand why some people kill venomous snakes and well any kind of snake.

thanks
Kyle

I have only seen a handful of copperheads while out walking around. Their camouflage is very effective, even when pitted against the eyes of the most seasoned herper. Your are correct about the logs though. Nearly all the coppers I've seen in SC while out walking through the woods were near a log and retreated to it when confronted. I was hiking down in Aiken,SC one day and happened to see the tail of one go under a log. I tried to get it, but it quickly disappeared into a hole. The easiest way to find them(and most productive) is by road cruising local backroads in the foothills around nightfall and a few hours afterwards. Another great method of locating contortrix is by lifting old billboards, plywood, tin, etc. I've even found coppers under pieces of discarded old carpet. They sit under these fixtures waiting for prey to come by, so always lift things with a hook, not your fingers. Be careful, copperheads are the most aggressive venomous snake I've encountered in SC by far. They can strike nearly their whole body length by lunging forward with their whole body as they strike.

There are definitely plenty of copperheads in the upstate of South Carolina. I have seen numerous individuals within the city limits of Greenville, but the most surefire way to find a lot of them around here is road cruising summer nights (it may not be too late to do a little crusing). Try the areas up near Jones Gap and Caesers Head.

Good Luck
Justin

Alright Im bout to go hunting in a hour or so. Near were i live piedmont there is a bunch or woods and a river and a pond. Hope ill find something!

ty,
Kyle