Copperhead vs Rat Snake

The quick tellYoung rat snakes are gray with dark blotches on the back, not hourglass bands, and they have round pupils. Adults turn black, gray or striped.

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 rat snake): Peter Paplanus, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Rat snake

Harmless · Pantherophis obsoletus complex

Adults are usually shiny black, gray or yellow with stripes
Young are gray with dark blotches and get mistaken for copperheads
Body shaped like a loaf of bread in cross-section
Round pupils

Size: 42–72 in. Habitat: Woods, farms and suburbs across the East and Midwest; good climbers.

Not venomous.

Where each one lives

Copperhead only
Rat snake only
Both
Neither

Copperhead: 28 states. Rat snake: 28 states. Both live in 27 states.

Side by side

	Copperhead	Rat snake
Danger	Medically significant	Harmless
Size	24–36 in	42–72 in
States	28	28
Habitat	Wooded hillsides, rocky ridges, wood piles and suburban yards in the East and South	Woods, farms and suburbs across the East and Midwest; good climbers

Questions

How can you tell a copperhead from a rat snake?

Young rat snakes are gray with dark blotches on the back, not hourglass bands, and they have round pupils. Adults turn black, gray or striped.

Which one is dangerous?

The copperhead: medically significant. The rat 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, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and West Virginia.