I want to thank everyone who informed me that the photos of the snake, below, are not that of a northern copperhead, but of the common milk snake. That makes me feel a lot better, having poisonous snakes in my backyard would not have made me very happy. Milk snakes come with many different markings and are harmless, non-poisonous critters. For more information about milk snakes, go to http://www.uga.edu/srelherp/snakes/lamtri.htm or http://www.umass.edu/nrec/snake_pit/pages/milk.html .

Location:
The following photos were taken at about 5:00 pm on Tuesday, June 9, 2009, while walking my dog in the backyard, in Vestal Center, NY, about 2 miles north of the PA border.

Sorry the photos are not better but I was walking the dog at the time and had only my cell phone on me. By the time I went back into the house and came back with the camera, the snake was gone.

For More Information:
To learn more about the Northern Copperhead in New York State, check out the following links (links open in new window):

SUNY-ESF Center: Snakes of New York State
Snake Species of New York State