Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I was wondering if anybody knows how to sex copperheads without probing. I recently aquired two more, but the sex is unknown. The first one is about 26 inches, and a very bold pattern, the second is around 32 inches, and the pattern is a bit more light.
Thanks,
KRis
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DON'T TREAD ON ME

if you are lucky enough to have 1.1 the difference should be obvious...the male's tail will be significantly longer than the female's...

if you can't see any difference in the tails you should probe them because you may have 0.2 or 2.0

good luck,
Steve

Yes, the ones tail is longer. I plan on probing them, i just have to get my probes. A friend has them. I think i do have 1.1 just beacuse of the tail. But i was not positive.

Thanks,
Kris
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DON'T TREAD ON ME

Try counting subcaudal scales. I'm not sure of the exact range, but females will have fewer than males, to compensate for the difference in length. Like I said, I don't know off the top of my head, but I think females will have 25 or fewer, and males have more than 26. Of course, there is the ever-present overlap between genders. Check with Fitch(1960) and Wright and Wright(1957).
I agree that probing is the only sure bet. Have fun!
creep

I'll bet pigs to polecats you probe it as a female if you've never probed agkistrodon before.

you have to go sort of "up and turn" to get into the hemipenal sheath. I'm much better at eyeballing them than probing them.

I look for thickness just past the vent rather than tail length.

just remember boys have a bulge, whether they are snakes or people

I'd say I have probably 95 percent accuracy eyeballing cottons and coppers, but only about 50 percent accuracy probing them.

trio of southerns. I was believing them to be a 1.2 trio but from looking at tail length, they all look like males. And I have an amazing hypo that I always believed to be female but now that I just got the other 2 to try to breed her with, her tail looks really long. But I was looking at them last night, like I said all the tails are about the same length but when you say about the bulge, only the one that I believed to be male in the first place had it. I didn't know that about Agkistrodon. I love learning about them. Copperheads have been one of my favorite snakes since I was about 5. Thanks.

I looked at the tails and the one is a bit longer than the other, and the have a different shape. I think i do have a 1.1 group.

Thanks,
Kris
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DON'T TREAD ON ME