Copperhead
Agkistrodon contortrix (Linnaeus, 1766)
Taxonomy
| Kingdom | Animalia |
|---|---|
| Phylum | Chordata |
| Class | Reptilia |
| Order | Squamata |
| Family | Viperidae |
| Genus | Agkistrodon |
| Species | Agkistrodon contortrix (Linnaeus, 1766) |
Description
Diagnostic characters
- Ecological class
- Accidental
Distribution
Range
Known from four counties across three states.
Continent
North America
Country
United States
States and provinces
Arkansas, Kentucky, Tennessee
Counties
- Arkansas
- Baxter, Stone
- Kentucky
- Edmonson
- Tennessee
- Hamilton
Conservation and management
IUCN Red List
LC Least Concern
Assessed in 2007.
NatureServe
G5 Secure
National ranks
- United States
- N5 Secure
Subnational ranks
- Virginia
- S5 Secure
- New York
- S3 Vulnerable
- South Carolina
- S5 Secure
- NE
- S2 Imperiled
- Tennessee
- S5 Secure
- NJ
- S3 Vulnerable
- Indiana
- S4 Apparently Secure
- Connecticut
- S3 Vulnerable
- Mississippi
- S5 Secure
- North Carolina
- S5 Secure
- Maryland
- S5 Secure
- DE
- S1 Critically Imperiled
- Illinois
- S4 Apparently Secure
- West Virginia
- S3 Vulnerable
- Florida
- S2 Imperiled
- Missouri
- S5 Secure
- Ohio
- SNR Unranked
- Louisiana
- S5 Secure
- Iowa
- S1 Critically Imperiled
- Kansas
- S5 Secure
- Arkansas
- SNR Unranked
- Georgia
- S5 Secure
- Kentucky
- S5 Secure
- Pennsylvania
- S3 Vulnerable
- Texas
- S5 Secure
- Massachusetts
- S1 Critically Imperiled
- Oklahoma
- SNR Unranked
- District of Columbia
- S1 Critically Imperiled
- Alabama
- S5 Secure
State and federal status
Not listed under the U.S. Endangered Species Act
References
- Dunivan, J.D., Tumlison, C.R. & McDaniel, V.R. 1982. Cave fauna of Arkansas: further records. Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science 36: 87–88. https://scholarworks.uark.edu/jaas/vol36/iss1/28.
- Heath, D.R., Saugey, D.A. & Heidt, G.A. 1986. Abandoned mine fauna of the Ouachita Mountains, Arkansas: vertebrate taxa. Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science 40: 33–36.
- Matthews, L.E. 2007. Caves of Chattanooga. National Speleological Society, Huntsville, Alabama, USA. 192 pp. ISBN 978–1-879961–27–2.
- McDaniel, V.R. & Gardner, J.E. 1977. Cave fauna of Arkansas: vertebrate taxa. Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science 31: 68–71. https://scholarworks.uark.edu/jaas/vol31/iss1/22.
How to cite this account
Agkistrodon contortrix (Linnaeus, 1766). Cave Biology Data Portal, account SP-2151. https://cavebiology.org/species/agkistrodon-contortrix/ (accessed 7 September 2026).
Data sources and funding are listed in the Acknowledgments.
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