Talk:Agkistrodon piscivorus

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[edit] Maps

I've found a source for wikipedia usable maps (http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/united_states.html) and I'll start stitching together the census line maps to produce a US map to use for species ranges.

These maps have been used on some pages already (which is how I found them). See Arlington County, Virginia for an example.

I don't know how far you've gotten on this, but I found some good PDF maps at the US Census Bureau, which are public domain. I cleaned up one of them to show state and county borders; no rivers and lakes, unfortunately, but it's a nice high resolution. Check it out. -- Wapcaplet 22:10, 20 Dec 2003 (UTC)

[edit] Copperhead?

I'm no herpetologist or anything, but isn't that snake to the left of the description a copperhead?

No, I'm pretty sure that's a young cottonmouth. As juveniles these two species are very much alike, but according to Conant (1975), the main difference is that young cottonmouths have a dark postocular stripe (a line on the side of the head that descends from behind the eye to the angle of the jaw) and young copperheads do not. In the picture, you can just see a postocular stripe on the left side of the animal's head. --Jwinius 10:56, 31 May 2007 (UTC)
It's a cottonmouth. The young look very similar to ccopperheads, leading a lot of people to believe that coppers live in areas where they don't (like South Florida). Lfishel 05:23, 2 June 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Cottonmouths in trees...

Young cottonmouths are occasionally seen in low bushes and I can't rule out one climbing a tree now and then, but certainly 99.9% of the "cottonmouths" seen basking in tree branches over water are harmless banded watersnakes (nerodia fasciata) or related species, the snakes most commonly mistaken for cottonmouths... I'm not sure what would constitute verification of this, since there are no doubt hundreds of people who swear they've seen it and the fact that no herpetologist or serious snake keeper has ever witnessed it and no one has ever taken a picture doesn't "prove" that it didn't happen. 65.218.191.140 21:08, 28 April 2006 (UTC)no they have not proved!!

One other thing, these snakes are located in Mississippi, as well. I do not know why that state did not get mentioned.

[edit] Request: swimming picture of non-venomous watersnake

This page could benefit from a picture of a non-venomous watersnake swimming. Then readers could see the diference in how they swim, as this is a key way of distinguishing between cottonmouths and other watersnakes.JeffStickney 13:11, 15 October 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Copperhead as a common name

Are we sure that Copperhead is a common name for a Cottonmouth? I'm pretty sure it's not. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Jonjuan (talk • contribs) 17:22, August 29, 2007 (UTC)

According to Wright & Wright (1957), "copperhead" was at one point or another a common name used by some people to refer to A. piscivorus. That this name is usually used to refer to A. contortrix is beside the point. However, it is a good example of how confusing common names can be. --Jwinius 17:38, 29 August 2007 (UTC)