Copperhead vs Corn Snake

The quick tellCorn snakes have red or orange blotches outlined in black and a checkerboard belly. Copperheads have tan hourglass bands with no black outline and a plain head.

Photo: Peter Paplanus, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Copperhead

Medically significant · Agkistrodon contortrix

Copper to tan body with dark hourglass bands: wide on the sides, narrow on the spine
Plain coppery head with no pattern
Young snakes have a bright yellow-green tail tip
Cat-like vertical pupils and a pit between eye and nostril

Size: 24–36 in. Habitat: Wooded hillsides, rocky ridges, wood piles and suburban yards in the East and South.

The venomous snake behind most bites in the eastern US. Bites are painful and need medical care, but deaths are extremely rare.

Photo: Peter Paplanus, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Corn snake

Harmless · Pantherophis guttatus

Orange to brownish body with red blotches outlined in black
Black and white checkerboard belly
Slim head, round pupils
Spear-point mark on top of the head

Size: 24–48 in. Habitat: Fields, pine woods and barns of the Southeast.

Not venomous.

Where each one lives

Copperhead only
Corn snake only
Both
Neither

Copperhead: 28 states. Corn snake: 16 states. Both live in 15 states.

Side by side

	Copperhead	Corn snake
Danger	Medically significant	Harmless
Size	24–36 in	24–48 in
States	28	16
Habitat	Wooded hillsides, rocky ridges, wood piles and suburban yards in the East and South	Fields, pine woods and barns of the Southeast

Questions

How can you tell a copperhead from a corn snake?

Corn snakes have red or orange blotches outlined in black and a checkerboard belly. Copperheads have tan hourglass bands with no black outline and a plain head.

Which one is dangerous?

The copperhead: medically significant. The corn snake: harmless. If you are not sure, keep your distance and do not handle it.

Where do both live?

Both live in 15 states: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia.