Baby Copperhead: How to Identify One in North Carolina

Not sure whether the small snake by your steps is a baby copperhead? Look at the tail first. NC State Extension says young copperheads usually have greenish-yellow or yellow tail tips. Then look for the copperhead pattern: dark hourglass-shaped bands that are narrow across the back and wide on the sides, over a tan, brown or pinkish background.

Copperheads do not lay eggs, so every baby copperhead snake you see was born alive, in late summer or early fall according to the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NC Wildlife). The young have less venom than adults, and like adults they can bite without injecting any venom at all. That is why NC Wildlife calls them no more or less dangerous than a grown copperhead.

Is the snake inside your house or garage right now? Keep people and pets out of that room and call.

What Does a Baby Copperhead Look Like?

Every sign in this list can be seen from several steps away. You never need to get closer to check, and a snake you cannot name should be treated as venomous.

• Tail tip: NC State Extension says juveniles usually have a greenish-yellow or yellow tail tip. Usually is not always, so a plain tail does not clear a snake by itself. NC Wildlife notes that young water snakes lack the yellow tip.
• Hourglass bands: a young copperhead already wears the adult pattern, shaped like an hourglass or dumbbell. NC Wildlife says patterns vary, but nearly all copperheads have at least some complete hourglass bands.

The rest of the look, from the coppery head with its dark eye line to the base color, is the same as a grown snake's. Our copperhead removal page lists what a copperhead looks like as an adult, including why head shape is a poor test.

Juvenile Copperhead vs Adult

The tail tip is the difference NC State Extension singles out for juveniles. Size is the other obvious one, and it can fool people: a snake that small looks easy to pick up and move. Treat a small banded snake with the same caution as a big one.

Snakes That Look Like Copperheads in North Carolina

Many small snakes people take for baby copperheads turn out to be a harmless copperhead look-alike, and small brown snakes are a frequent mix-up. Killing the snake to be safe is the riskier choice: NC Wildlife says a large percentage of copperhead bites happen when people try to capture, kill or handle them.

These are the look-alikes NC State Extension describes in its guide to harmless North Carolina snakes. Its range notes put every snake in this table in the Piedmont, where Mooresville sits.

You may also see the eastern milk snake on look-alike lists. NC State Extension says it lives mainly in the mountains of North Carolina, so it is an unlikely find in Mooresville. For every species in the state, see our guide to snakes in North Carolina.

Tip: judge the pattern, not just the tail. Blotches, stripes or diamonds instead of hourglass bands point toward one of these harmless snakes. If you still cannot tell, treat it as a copperhead and leave it alone.

Baby Copperhead vs Brown Snake

A tiny brown snake in a woodpile or in front of the mower is often a DeKay's brown snake rather than a baby copperhead. NC State Extension describes DeKay's brown snake as reaching about 18 inches, with a pale stripe down the center of the back and paired dark blotches along the body. Young ones may show a light half-collar behind the head, and brown snakes usually do not bite when cornered.

A young copperhead usually has the yellow tail tip, and its crossbands pinch narrow over the back instead of forming a center stripe.

Corn Snake vs Copperhead

Corn snakes are often reddish, so people expect a copperhead. NC State Extension describes a glossy red, orange, gray or brown snake with reddish-brown markings outlined with black. Look for those black outlines. A copperhead's bands are chestnut brown and narrow across the middle of the back.

Garter Snake vs Baby Copperhead

Garter snakes are mostly stripes. NC State Extension describes a light stripe down the center of the back with a less defined stripe on each side, running the length of the body. A copperhead's bands cross the body instead. Some garter snakes lack the stripe and show a checkered pattern, so if you cannot tell which you have, keep your distance.

Baby Copperhead Season in NC

Copperheads mate in the spring and fall, and NC Wildlife says each female gives birth to 3 to 14 live young, sometimes as many as 20, during the late summer or early fall. That is the time of year to expect small copperheads around the yard.

A litter can be several snakes, so after you find one small copperhead in late summer, watch where your hands and feet go in leaf litter, pine straw and woodpiles for a while. NC State Extension says copperheads can be found under cover objects. Our prevention guide explains how to keep snakes away by cutting down that cover.

Are Baby Copperheads More Venomous?

No. NC Wildlife answers this one directly: "Even young copperheads can dry bite, but also have less venom than adults, so they're no more or less dangerous than adults." A dry bite is one with no venom injected, and NC Wildlife says copperheads often bite that way in self-defense.

Are baby copperheads poisonous? Strictly speaking, they are venomous, because the venom has to be delivered by a bite.

A bite from a young copperhead still needs medical care right away. Our copperhead removal page covers what to do after a copperhead bite, for people and for dogs.

Found a Baby Copperhead? What to Do

The steps are the same as for a grown copperhead: back away, bring kids and dogs inside, and give it time to leave. Our page on copperhead removal lists them in order, along with when a call makes sense.

Tip: do not pick it up, trap it or kill it, however harmless a snake that size looks. NC Wildlife links a large share of copperhead bites to exactly that kind of handling.

A baby copperhead in the house or garage is a call, not a form: keep everyone out of that room and phone Mooresville Snake Removal. The form is for things that can wait, such as a shed skin you found or small snakes you keep seeing in the same bed.

Baby Copperhead Questions