Copperhead vs Milk Snake

The quick tellEastern milk snakes have red-brown blotches outlined in black and a checkerboard belly. Copperheads have hourglass bands without black edges.

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 (Eastern milk snake): Peter Paplanus from St. Louis, Missouri, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Milk snake

Harmless · Lampropeltis triangulum complex

In the Northeast: tan or gray with red-brown blotches outlined in black
In the South and West: red, black and yellow or white rings, red touching black
Smooth shiny scales, round pupils

Size: 24–36 in. Habitat: Fields, woods and rocky slopes over most of the country.

Not venomous.

Where each one lives

Copperhead only
Milk snake only
Both
Neither

Copperhead: 28 states. Milk snake: 41 states. Both live in 27 states.

Side by side

	Copperhead	Milk snake
Danger	Medically significant	Harmless
Size	24–36 in	24–36 in
States	28	41
Habitat	Wooded hillsides, rocky ridges, wood piles and suburban yards in the East and South	Fields, woods and rocky slopes over most of the country

Questions

How can you tell a copperhead from a milk snake?

Eastern milk snakes have red-brown blotches outlined in black and a checkerboard belly. Copperheads have hourglass bands without black edges.

Which one is dangerous?

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

Where do both live?

Both live in 27 states: Alabama, Arkansas, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia.