The Texas Horned Lizard (Phrynosoma cornutum) is the horned lizard is popularly called a "horned toad," "horny toad," or "horned frog," but it is neither a toad nor a frog. The popular names come from the lizard's rounded body and blunt snout, which give it a decidedly toad-like or frog-like appearance. (Phrynosoma literally means "toad-bodied." Cornutum means "horned.") The lizard's horns are extensions of its cranium and are composed of true bone.
Ten Facts about Texas Horned Lizard
- The length of an average Texas Horned Lizard is 69 mm (2.7 in) snout-vent length, however the upper boundary for males is 94 mm (3.7 in) and for females it is 114 mm (4.5 in).
- When threatened by a predator, a horned lizard will puff up its body to cause its spiny scales to protrude, making it difficult to swallow.
- Also has the ability to squirt an aimed stream of blood from the corners of the eyes and sometimes from its mouth for a distance of up to 5 ft (1.5 m).
- Predators such as wolves, coyotes, and domestic dogs.
- About 70% of the Texas horned lizard's diet is made up of harvester ants, though they supplement these with termites, beetles, and grasshoppers.
- It ranges from Colorado and Kansas to northern Mexico, and from southeastern Arizona to Texas.[2] There are also isolated, introduced populations in the Carolinas, Georgia, and northern Florida.
- They have a life expectancy of from 5 to 8 years in the deserts of North America.
- Because horned lizards dig for hibernation, nesting and insulation purposes, they commonly are found in loose sand or loamy soils.
- Texas horned lizard has declined in about 30% of its range, though there is some indication it may be making a comeback.
- They can live up to 4-7 years.
