Not to be confused with Copperhead.
The Australian copperhead is the king of snakes in the southeastern tip of the continent it's named for. An all-terrain, all-weather snake, this predator moves over land or through water, and even snow. One injection of its deadly venom usually kills small prey instantly. On par with a cobra, the copperhead's venom can even kill humans if they aren't treated immediately.
Tiny Terror: The Australian copperhead's fangs are small, but they're sharp as needles. They're fixed in place and hollow so the snake can easily inject a deadly dose of venom into a victim's body.
Cobra Copy: If threatened by a large predator, this snake prefers to escape danger by slithering away. If cornered, however, it rears up, hisses loudly and flattens its head and neck in imitation of a cobra.
Snow Snake[]
This snake hunts by day.
Unlike most other Australian snakes, these copperheads are well adapted to cold weather. In fact, these are the only snakes in the world that can be found slithering through snow. Like all snakes, they do hibernate through most of the winter, but they go to sleep later than other snakes and wake up before winter actually ends, making sure they can grab the juiciest prey available while other predators are still asleep.
Snake Swallower: Frogs are the staple of the Australian copperhead's diet, but the snake will eat just about anything it can swallow. This predator has no problem eating other copperheads, even its own young if prey is scarce.
Water World: The Australian copperhead sometimes slides into lakes to gobble up tadpoles one after the other, but leaves enough alive to grow into adults, which it will eat when they mature into frogs.
Poor Farmer[]
- A farmer in southeast Australia parks his tractor so he can take a short break from his work. Unknowingly, he stops right next to an Australian copperhead's resting spot. The sleepy snake isn't disturbed until the man accidentally steps on it.
- Both the snake and the farmer panic, but the snake is faster. Unable to escape, the snake rears up and bites the man several times, and pumps venom into his body with each bite. The startled farmer will become paralyzed and die unless he gets medical attention fast.
Trading Card[]
Trivia[]
- The mini-heading "Water World" on the back of the card is possibly a reference to the 1995 action movie of the same name, Waterworld.