Dorothy Foster, age 11, of Mesa, Ariz., for her question:

HOW LONG IS A COPPERHEAD SNAKE?

The copperhead is a poisonous American snake. Also known as the pilot snake, this pit viper averages about 2 1/2 feet in length although some grow to be 4 feet long.

The snake's body has broad chestnut red bands between coppery red ones. It bites more people than the banded and diamondback rattlesnakes because the copperhead is silent and smaller, and it is not so quickly noticed.

The snake's bite is seldom fatal to adults, but it can be very serious to children who weigh less than 75 pounds.

The reptile eats mostly rodents and other small mammals. Sometimes it eats frogs and insects. The female delivers three to seven young in August.

Copperheads live south of the line from the northeastern tip of Massachusetts through Pittsburgh to the southeastern corner of Nebraska. From here the line passes southwest to the upper Rio Grande in Texas and then just misses New Mexico.

In this area any snake is likely to be called a "copperhead" if its markings resemble one. But the true copperhead can be told from other kinds of snakes in a number of ways. It has no rattle on the tip of its tail. It has a pit below each eye. The snake's nostril is in front of the pit.