The end of summer begins the baby copperhead season across the Upper Cumberland.
Cumberland University Emeritus Biology Professor Danny Bryan said baby copperheads can be commonly found this time of year, soon after they are born. Bryan said baby copperheads may be spotted in edge areas.
“What I mean by edge, along the edge of woodland and a field or kind of rock out cropping,” Bryan said. “Again, they don’t typically like open areas.”
Bryan said copperheads may also be found around gardens because they like to eat voles. Bryan said baby copperheads are often seen with their mothers for the first ten or so days of their lives. After a shed, the snakes will retreat to the woods to forage until hibernation in the late fall.
Bryan said these snakes have the typical reddish-brown hourglass band markings that adults have. Bryan said they also feature a green tail tip.
“These baby copperheads use that green tail tip as a lure,” Bryan said. “One of their favorite foods to eat, of course, this time as well is lizards. So we have these baby lizards running around, and these baby copperheads take advantage and lure the lizards in with that tail and grab a meal.”
There is a common idea that baby copperheads are more dangerous than adults, but Bryan said this is a false narrative. He said the venom from an adult is the same venom from a baby. Bryan said although baby copperheads are more likely to expel their full venom supply, they do not produce as much as an adult.
Bryan said bites from any copperhead regardless of age are severe, and people who get bit should call emergency personnel immediately. He said bites from a copperhead, or any snake, usually come because people are doing something they should not be doing.
“Snakes don’t want to bite,” Bryan said. “Venom is a costly commodity. In other words, venom is made of protein. So they must feed in order to produce the venom and gain the protein that way. And of course, they don’t want to waste the venom on something they can’t eat.”
Bryan said the best thing to do upon seeing a copperhead is stepping back a few steps to get out of striking distance.
Bryan said if someone is bitten, they should remove restrictive clothing and accessories from the affected area in case of swelling. Bryan said people should not use a tourniquet, but instead elevate the bitten area until help is present.
