Camping and woodcraft - Scoutmastercg.com

438 CAMPING AND WOODCRAFT—the latter is broken ofi or extracted, a new fang willbe ready for business within a few days.Here are a few characteristics of the pit vipers,as our three deadly snakes collectively are called:1. Copperhead (also called deaf adder, uplandmoccasin, pilot snake, chunk head).—A small snake,2 to 3 feet long, with moderately thick body, broadand triangular head quite distinct from the neck,tail short, dark colored, and pointed. Color ofback, a bronze hazel or light reddish brown ; with 15to 20 darker bands, which are narrow on the backand expand to wide blotches on the flanks, the shapeoeing somewhat like that of a dumb-bell with veryshort handle. Head, a bright copper-red, with twosmall dark-brown spots close together on the foreheadat upper part of head-shield, and with a creamcoloredband around the mouth.The copperhead inhabits the mountainous and hillyregions from Massachusetts southward to the Gulf,and westward (south of Michigan, Wisconsin, Iowa,and Nebraska) to Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas.Its venom is as deadly as that of the rattlesnake,but it is not secreted in as large quantity as that ofthe larger rattlers; consequently the wound is notlikely to be so serious. Still, the copperhead is aparticularly dangerous creature, because it gives nawarning of its presence, nor, according to my observation,does it try to get out of the way, but holdsits ground and springs at any intruder.Only one species.2. Cottonmouth moccasin (water moccasin).A larger snake, ordinarily about 3 ft., sometimes4 ft. long. Stout body, head shaped like that ofthe copperhead and similarly distinct from the neck.Back brown, reddish, or olive, with 11 to 15 ratherinconspicuous bars, or pairs of bars, of dark brown,'with light centers on each flank. Tail short, pointed,and dark brown or banded. Belly brownish-yellowmottled with dark blotches.