Brenda Greer
05/11/2011
Biology Concepts
John Distefano

The Texas horned lizard, known by most people as a horny toad has been on the Texas endangered species list since 1967. The Texas horned lizard has a spiky body, which gives them their name horned lizard or horny toad. The horny toad can be found in Texas, Georgia, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, the Carolinas, and Mexico. The Texas horny toad is the largest and most widely distributed of the 14 species of horned lizards in the western United States and Mexico. These unique looking creatures have a flat body and are fierce looking. The head of a horny toad has numerous horns; the two central head spines are much longer than the other horns. Most of the Texas horned lizards have a light line that extends from its head down the middle of its back. The Texas horned lizard is the only species that has dark brown stripes that radiate down from their eyes across the top of their head. The horny toad can be found in aired regions as well as semiarid habitats that have at least some loose soil for burrowing. They are usually found in sandy soil with a limited amount of vegetation. They can also be found in areas with gravely soil as well. The Texas horned toad hibernates from September or October to around late April or May. While the horny toad hibernates they slow their metabolism down so they can go for long periods of time with no food or water. Their mating usually occurs soon after hibernation. After the female and the male mate, the female will then carry her eggs for a period of time as they develop. The female horny toad will choose a nest and then she will dig a slanted tunnel and lay 13 to 45 eggs in two to three soil packed layers. After she buries her eggs she may sit on the tunnel entrance for one night, she leaves the nest and never comes back to her eggs. After about five to nine weeks the baby horny toads will begin to hatch and fight their way out of their eggs with a special egg tooth. The Texas horned toad eats a variety of insects, but their favorite insect to eat is the red harvester ant. These funny looking creatures will sit and eat dozens of the red harvester ants in just one sitting. They will sit quietly waiting on their prey, and then snatch them up with a flick of their tongue. Horny toads will also eat beetles, termites, spiders, grasshoppers, and some plant material. The Texas horned toad has a unique defense system. When they are threatened by a predator their first reaction is to flatten out their bodies and then freeze in place. When the horny toad does this they are able to camouflage themselves and blend in with the ground which reduces their shadow. They also will run for a short time and then stop quickly to create the illusion that they disappeared. When the horny toad is very angry they can inflate their bodies and hiss. The horny toad is capable of squirting blood from their eyes; they do this when they are afraid or trapped. They force blood from their eyes, when their blood pressure rises so quickly that the cavities in their heads fill with blood and then burst at the corners of their eyes, which sprays whatever predator is scaring them. The blood that the horny toad shoots from its eyes is mixed with a chemical that taste bad to would be predators such as wolves, coyotes and dogs. The horny toad is unique in appearance and has a very pleasant personality. These two features have made it an appealing pet for many Texans as well as other people at one time or another. You can hold these gentle creatures in your hand turn them over and rub their bellies until they go to sleep. The appeal that the horny toad has is part of the reason their species has declined so much. In the fifties and early sixties every store considered to be a tourist trap collected thousands of them in one single year. School age children were paid a nickel for every horny toad they brought in. Once a horny toad is out of their habitat they do not survive long. They need a proper diet consisting mostly of harvester ants. Since there has been such a decline in the population of horny toads it is illegal to own one. Construction of highways has also played a major role in the decline of the horny toad. The horny toad likes the asphalt because it holds heat from the sun; this makes it a perfect sunning place for the horny toad. The problem with the horny toads liking the asphalt is that one of their instincts is to freeze when they since danger. This makes them an easy target for cars and trucks and they have been flattened left and right. The introduction of the red imported fire ants into Texas in 1957 has also been a contributing factor in the decline of the Texas horny toad. When people put out pesticides to kill the red imported fire ants they are also killing off harvester ants which horny toads need in their diet. The pesticides can also kill the horny toads as well as other species that live in the horny toad habitat. Herbicides which are used to kill weeds, may also affect the population of harvester ants because this reduces the seeds that the harvester ants feed on. Since the population of harvester ants declined due to the use of herbicides, so does the population of the Texas horned lizard. The Texas horned lizard has also declined due to human disturbance of their natural habitat. Their natural habitat has become farm land or urban centers. As Urbanization explodes the Texas horned lizard population declines. Another possible answer to the decline of the horny toad is hot dry weather which is associated with extreme drought. The extreme drought causes the harvester ants to become dormant which in turn affects the Texas horny toad population. Preserving habitats is essential to preserving biodiversity. Habitat conservation is one of the most important issues faced when it comes to the decline of the Texas horny toad. As population of the world increases so does land use which give wild species less space to call home. One solution to this problem is putting regulations on land use development. Land use and management based on scientific knowledge is needed to protect not only horny toads but all other wild species of animals as well as plants. Protecting the habitat of these unique Texas horned lizards is one solution in the ongoing battle to save this species from extinction. The society for the preservation of horned toads wants to expand their habitat by purchasing land. Ranchers with native pasture can help by keeping it native pasture land. Also if some cultivated land could be turned back into native pasture land this would also be helpful. Monitoring horny toads is also useful; it gives scientist information on the locations where horny toads are still thriving or where they are declining. To save the precious species of life that is all around, habitat conservation needs to be a practice taken seriously not only by scientist but from all people. Human activity is what has caused most of the destruction of wild habitats so now it is up to humans to reverse the effects on these habitats. Biodiversity must be preserved, but the only effective way this can be done is to preserve or restore the habitats of the wild. The public should be educated on the use of pesticides. Pesticides not only kill red imported fire ants, but also the red harvester ants and horny toads. If pesticides have to be used to kill red imported fire ants, it should be carefully applied only to the red imported fire ant beds. There is almost always an alternative to using pesticides when killing fire ants or unwanted insects. Drenching the fire ant mounds with hot soapy water will kill the fire ants; this will have to be done several times to be effective. Another way of killing fire ants without pesticides is with compost tea, citrus oil, 2 tablespoons of household molasses and 2 tablespoons of orange oil in one gallon of water. Pesticides are more convenient and easier to use but anytime a nontoxic method can be used it is better for the habitat of the plants and animals that surround us. Even though insects are bothersome at times they are very import to a healthy ecosystem. The Texas horned lizard is a species worth protecting. They are unique animals with a sweet disposition. They need to continue to be a part of every Texans life. This generation as well as the future generations needs to be able to witness these wonderful creatures in their natural habitat. It is the responsibility of every person to protect the delicate species of this world that God has blessed us with. Horny toads are a sweet natured and fun to watch species. These lizards need to be preserved for future generations. If their natural habitats are protected they will gain in numbers and some day maybe even be taken off the endangered species list. [pic]

[pic] References Animals.national geographic.com Allaboutfrogs.com Wikipedia.org Tpwd.state.tx.us Anniescottage.tripod.com Lizard-landscapes.com