Copperhead Bites Man in Germantown

A 37-year-old man was bitten on the foot by a copperhead Tuesday night in Germantown.

The man, who has not been identified, was walking his dog at a retention lake near Wisteria Drive when he was bitten, said Jennifer Plaia, a spokeswoman for Shady Grove Adventist Hospital.

He was admitted to Shady Grove Adventist Emergency Center at Germantown at around 9:30 p.m. Tuesday and was later transferred to Shady Grove Adventist Hospital in Rockville. The man was still recovering from the bite as of early Wednesday evening, Plaia said.

Further information about the bite victim’s condition was not available at presstime.

Of the 27 snakes in Maryland, only the copperhead and timber rattlesnake are poisonous, according to information Plaia provided.

Copperheads are considered dangerous, though their bites are rarely fatal.

Nationwide, poison snakes bite an estimated 7,000 to 8,000 people per year, and about five of those people die, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

News of the bite comes with a warning that there could be more snake sightings, recent storms having lured the reptiles from their wooded habitats.

Plaia said Shady Grove Hospital recently has treated a snake victim who was bit in Potomac.