Horned lizard
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The Horned Lizards (Phrynosoma) is a genus of the Phrynosomatidae family of lizards. Horned lizards are often wrongly called "Horned Toads" or "Horny Toads", but are not toads at all. They are reptiles, not amphibians.
Texas Christian University's mascot is Horned Frog (actually P. cornutum, the Texas horned lizard).
Horned Lizards are morphologically similar to the Australian Thorny lizard (Moloch horridus), but are only distantly related.
Horned lizards carry with them a wide variety of means to avoid predation. Their coloration generally serves as camouflage. The lizard's spines make it a difficult meal for any predator that finds it. The lizards also have the ability to inflate their bodies in an effort to frighten potential predators.
At least four species of horned lizard (P. coronatum, cornutum, orbiculare, and solare) are known to have an unusual antipredator behavior. When attacked, they are capable of squirting blood from their eyes. Although it often does little more than drip off the lizard's face, blood has been observed flying distances of over 1 m (3 ft).
Species
- Phrynosoma asio
- Phrynosoma braconnieri
- Phrynosoma cerroense
- Texas horned lizard, Phrynosoma cornutum
- Phrynosoma coronatum
- Phrynosoma ditmarsi
- Short-horned lizard, Phrynosoma douglasii
- Phrynosoma hernandesi
- Phrynosoma mcallii
- Phrynosoma modestum
- Phrynosoma orbiculare
- Desert horned lizard, Phrynosoma platyrhinos
- Phrynosoma solare
- Phrynosoma taurus
External links
- The Cold Blooded News - The Horned Lizards (http://coloherp.org/cb-news/Vol-29/cbn-0202/index.php)
- Horned Lizards (http://uts.cc.utexas.edu/~varanus/phryno.html)