Man says he was bitten by copperhead at Latta Plantation

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — A man was bitten by a copperhead Tuesday while he was walking at the Latta Plantation Nature Center Tuesday, the victim told paramedics.

The man told officials that he was walking down a trail near the Gar Creek canoe access area when he stepped on the snake, which bit him.

[IMAGES: Snake sightings in the area]

The man told fishermen that he kicked the snake into the water after he was bit and called 911.

He was taken to Novant Heath Huntersville Medical Center for treatment.

The fishermen told Channel 9 that it was the second snake bite in the area this week, but didn’t specify where the other bite was reported.

Channel 9 reported Monday that calls to the Carolinas Poison Center for snake bites have nearly quadrupled compared to last year, officials said.

The warmth makes cold-blooded snakes more active. The area experienced its hottest April on record.

[Snake bite calls to Carolinas Poison Center have quadrupled this year]

“(Snakes) are going to be warming up, sunning themselves somewhere, could be on warm rocks,” said Gary Marshall of Mecklenburg County Natural Resources.

The snakes blend into the environment.

"Really, the worst thing is to be walking that trail as hot as it is,” said James Wilkerson. “It’s hot. Them snakes are out looking for something to do. If you step on one, you are going to know it.”

The center received 71 calls about snake bites last month, compared to 19 calls in April 2016.

Copperheads, cottonmouths, rattlesnakes (eastern diamondback, pygmy and timber) and coral snakes are the venomous species native to North Carolina.

The coral snake is the rarest and the copperhead is the most plentiful, according to the Carolinas Poison Center.

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