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Information about Texas Horned Lizard

Texas horned lizard

Scientific classification
Kingdom:Animalia
Phylum:Chordata
Class:Sauropsida
Order:Squamata
Suborder:Sauria
Family:Phrynosomatidae
Genus:Phrynosoma
Species:P. cornutum
Binomial name
Phrynosoma cornutum
(Harlan, 1825)
The Texas horned lizard (Phrynosoma cornutum) is one of 14 North American species of spikey-bodied reptiles called horned lizards. The Texas species ranges from Colorado and Kansas to northern Mexico, and from southeastern Arizona to Louisiana and Arkansas. Texas is the heart of its range. [1] There are also isolated, introduced populations in the Carolinas, Georgia, and northern Florida. [2]

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.

The Texas horned lizard is the largest-bodied and most widely distributed of 8 species in the United States. It grows to a maximum length of 4-6 inches. Although its coloration generally serves as camouflage against predation, when threatened by a predator, a horned lizard puffs up its body to cause its spiny scales to protrude, making it difficult to swallow. The Texas horned lizard, along with at least three other species, also has the ability to squirt an aimed stream of blood from the corners of the eyes for a distance of up to 5 feet. This not only confuses would-be predators, the blood is mixed with a chemical that is foul-tasting to canidae 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. In recent years, the Texas horned lizard has declined in about 30% of its range, though there is some indication it may be making a comeback. The decline is usually blamed on overuse of pesticides and the spread of non-native, but highly aggressive and fiercely territorial, Brazilian fire ants. Both eradicate harvester ant colonies, destroying the horned lizard's principal source of food. The Texas horned lizard is now a protected species and it is illegal to take, possess, transport or sell them without a special permit.

Some Native American peoples regarded horned lizards as sacred. The animal is a common motif in the art of many Native Americans in the Southwestern U.S. and in Mexico.

The horned lizard is the state reptile of Texas and, as the "horned frog", is the mascot of Texas Christian University (TCU).

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Scientific classification or biological classification is a method by which biologists group and categorize species of organisms. Scientific classification also can be called scientific taxonomy, but should be distinguished from folk taxonomy, which lacks scientific basis.
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Chordata
Bateson, 1885

Typical Classes

See below

Chordates (phylum Chordata) are a group of animals that includes the vertebrates, together with several closely related invertebrates.
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Sauropsida*
Goodrich, 1916

Subclasses
  • Anapsida
  • Diapsida
Synonyms
  • Reptilia Laurenti, 1768
Reptiles are tetrapods and amniotes, animals whose embryos are surrounded by an amniotic membrane, and members of the class
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Squamata
Oppel, 1811

black: range of Squamata


Suborders
see text

This article is about the Squamata order of reptiles. For the Roman scale armour see: Lorica squamata.

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Sauria
Gauthier, 1984

Subgroups
  • Lepidosauromorpha
  • Archosauromorpha


Sauria is a clade of reptiles that includes all living diapsids, as well as their common ancestor and all its extinct descendants.
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Phrynosomatidae

Genera

Callisaurus
Cophosaurus
Holbrookia
Petrosaurus
Phrynosoma
Sator
Sceloporus
Uma
Urosaurus
Uta
Phrynosomatidae
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Phrynosoma
Wiegmann, 1828

Species

See text.
Horned lizards (Phrynosoma) are a genus of the Phrynosomatidae family of lizards.
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binomial nomenclature is the formal system of naming species. The system is also called binominal nomenclature (particularly in zoological circles), binary nomenclature (particularly in botanical circles), or the binomial classification system.
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For other persons of the same name, see Harlan.
Richard Harlan (September 19, 1796 - September 30, 1843) was an American naturalist, zoologist, physicist and paleontologist.
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North America is a continent [1] in the Earth's northern hemisphere and (chiefly) western hemisphere. It is bordered on the north by the Arctic Ocean, on the east by the North Atlantic Ocean, on the southeast by the Caribbean Sea, and on the south and west
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Sauropsida*
Goodrich, 1916

Subclasses
  • Anapsida
  • Diapsida
Synonyms
  • Reptilia Laurenti, 1768
Reptiles are tetrapods and amniotes, animals whose embryos are surrounded by an amniotic membrane, and members of the class
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Phrynosoma
Wiegmann, 1828

Species

See text.
Horned lizards (Phrynosoma) are a genus of the Phrynosomatidae family of lizards.
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State of Colorado

Flag of Colorado Seal
Nickname(s): The Centennial State
Motto(s): Nil sine numine

Official language(s) English

Capital Denver
Largest city Denver

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State of Kansas

Flag of Kansas Seal
Nickname(s): The Sunflower State
Motto(s): Ad astra per aspera

Official language(s) English[1]

Capital Topeka
Largest city Wichita
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Anthem
Himno Nacional Mexicano


Capital
(and largest city) Mexico City

Official languages Spanish (
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Arizona State Symbols
Living Symbols
 -Animal Ringtail Cat
 -Bird Cactus Wren
 -Butterfly Two-Tailed Swallowtail
 -Fish Apache Trout
 -Flower Saguaro Blossom
 -Furbearer Ringtail Cat
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State of Arkansas

Flag of Arkansas Seal
Nickname(s): The Natural State (current),
The Land of Opportunity (former)
Motto(s): Regnat Populus (The People Rule)

Official language(s) English


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State of Texas

Flag of Texas Seal
Nickname(s): Lone Star State
Motto(s): Friendship.
Before Statehood Known as
The Republic of Texas

Official language(s) No official language

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The Carolinas is a term used in the United States to refer collectively to the states of North and South Carolina. The Carolinas were known as the Province of Carolina during America's colonial period, from 1663–1710.
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State of Georgia

Flag of Georgia Seal of Georgia
Nickname(s): Peach State, Empire State of the South
Motto(s): Wisdom, Justice, and Moderation

Official language(s) English

Capital Atlanta

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Phrynosoma
Wiegmann, 1828

Species

See text.
Horned lizards (Phrynosoma) are a genus of the Phrynosomatidae family of lizards.
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Toad refers to a number of species of amphibians. A distinction is often made between frogs and toads by their appearance, prompted by the convergent adaptation among so-called toads to dry environments, which often entails a brown skin for camouflage which is also dry and leathery
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FROG

General
Dianelos Georgoudis, Damian Leroux, and Billy Simón Chaves
1998

Cipher detail
Key size(s):| 128, 192, or 256 bits

Block size(s):| 128 bits

8
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Lacertilia*
Günther, 1867

Families

Many, see text.

Lizards are reptiles of the order Squamata, normally possessing four legs, external ear openings and movable eyelids.
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Lacertilia*
Günther, 1867

Families

Many, see text.

Lizards are reptiles of the order Squamata, normally possessing four legs, external ear openings and movable eyelids.
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Motto
"In God We Trust"   (since 1956)
"E Pluribus Unum"   ("From Many, One"; Latin, traditional)
Anthem
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Camouflage, also known as cryptic coloration or concealing coloration, allows an otherwise visible organism or object to remain indiscernible from the surrounding environment. Examples include a tiger's stripes and the battledress of a modern soldier.
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