Hobbies And Interests
National Range
The subspecies of copperhead living in Connecticut is the northern copperhead. Connecticut is at the far northern part of the copperhead's range, with the geographical distribution of the reptile extending into southeastern and central Massachusetts. The copperhead enjoys a wide range across the eastern half of the United States. Its range extends south to northern Florida and as far west as southwest Texas and the central Great Plains.
Connecticut Distribution and Habitat
In Connecticut, expect copperheads to inhabit such environs as the borders of fields and meadows, open rocky ridges, stony hillsides and the edges of wetlands. Copperheads are all but absent from three of Connecticut's eight counties -- Windham, Litchfield and Tolland. The snake is more prominent in the coastal counties and the hills of the southeastern and southwestern sections of the small state. In the lowlands associated with the central portion of Connecticut, copperheads inhabit the rocky ridges located mostly on the western side of the state's biggest river, the Connecticut River. Fairfield County, once a bastion for the snake, has far fewer copperheads than in previous times.
Identification
The timber rattler is somewhat similar to the copperhead in appearance in that it possesses the same dark-colored, stocky body and a head wider than its neck. Both Connecticut species are pit vipers, featuring a heat-seeking pair of openings on its head to detect prey, as well as vertical pupils. To avoid having to get close enough to observe such distinctions, tell these two snakes apart by their size and by where you find them. Copperheads are in the range of 24 to 37 inches long; timber rattlers grow to lengths between 36 and 54 inches. Timber rattlers reside mostly in the northwest hills, where few copperheads exist. Timber rattlers also own a segmented rattle on the end of their tails.
Seasonal Behavior
As spring grows warmer, copperheads bask openly on rocks in the sun. They do so again in the fall before finding dens in which to spend the cold Connecticut winter. Once the weather becomes hot, copperheads as far north as Connecticut become nocturnal hunters, making a daytime encounter unlikely, according to the "National Audubon Society Field Guide to Reptiles and Amphibians." During autumn, copperheads look for a den site with a southern or eastern exposure -- often a rocky hillside. Copperhead snakes lose precious habitat due to the extensive development of the lowlands in the middle of Connecticut.