Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I have been collecting copperheads this year, and I think the largest of them may be gravid, but I can't find any information on the internet about telling if they are. She has been gaining weight recently and has a much higher body weight compared to the ones of similar size, and she didn't eat for about two weeks and still gained weight. She has also become more aggressive lately. There is also a very clear definition where her tail and body meet. What do you think?

Definitely sounds like it might be gravid to me. The definition between body and tail at the cloaca will grow as the snake nears its "due date" so I'd be expecting lots of little babies sometime soon. I'm not familiar with viper reproduction and can only compare to egg laying snakes, but it sounds gravid to me.
-----
1.0 sumatran short tailed python
0.1 ball python
0.1 rosy boa
0.1 corn snake
1.0 mexican king snake
1.1 buttermilk racers
0.0.2 texas rat snakes
0.0.1 broadbanded watersnakes
0.0.2 yellow bellied watersnake
0.0.1 diamond back watersnake
0.0.1 blotched watersnake
0.0.1 ribbon snake
0.1 Texas brown snake
0.0.1 western cottonmouth
0.0.1 southern copperhead
0.0.1 rattlesnake
1.0 bearded dragon
1.0 leopard gecko

If you are comfortable handling venomous snakes and know how to do so without being bitten (I am assuming you are), then you can try palpating the snake to check for embryos. I've never done this with a venomous snake but for colubrids you can run your fingers down the belly of the snake, pressing in toward the spine. Doing this you may feel bumps as you move toward the tail. If the bumps are irregular and bunched together then it is probably just digesting food. If you feel bumps regularly spaced starting about at midbody and all the way toward the vent, then each bump is quite likely a developing embryo. For non-venomous snakes the best way to do this is to hold onto the snake only with your palpating hand and let the snake crawl away. As it moves away it pulls the embryos over your fingers and they will feel like little pop beads as they go by. That seems like a horrible idea for a venomous snake. You'll probably need to restrain the head with a hook and use your free hand to feel along the belly. You may have to try several times starting as gentle as possible. You have to balance between gentle enough to not harm the embryos and hard enough to actually feel something. If you've never done this before then start very gentle and work up to the point at which you can feel something. I don't want to read about you being bit in the papers tomorrow. Be careful, please.