Went to an uncle's funeral this morning and afterwards went out to visit with my cousins at one's son's house. (my second cousin? First cousin twice-removed? I always get those mixed up) As I was getting out of my pickup, I saw some movement on the ground and it was this young "horned lizard".
(click any pic for larger view; last photo is super-high resolution)
They're getting very rare; when I was a kid, they were all over, especially around red ant beds. Since people will not tolerate ants and poison their mounds, now the horny toads have had their main supply of food cut off.
It's a shame, because while they look fiercesome, they're really docile creatures. You have to roughly handle one to get them to even open their toothless mouths at you. Horny toads can also eject or "spit" blood from their eyes (or thereabouts) and I've seen it exactly twice in all the hundreds of horny toads I've handled and seen handled. If you lie them on their backs and gently rub their tummy, they'll fall asleep.
So will I, but that's prob. TMI, huh?
A FEW MORE PICTURES
July 24, 2007
Horny Toad
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5 comments:
I really could use a manicure, too.
great pictures. They look sort of ugly cute ( the horned toads, not your fingers)
I'd dare say that the poison for the ants probablly poisoned a few of those guys too. I know the fire ants are miserable but it's a shame really to see other populations suffer.
I can understand people not wanting ant beds in their yards, but it saddens me to see so few of these fascinating creatures where they were once plentiful.
I've a friend who has a few acres right at the edge of town and she won't even mow around her red ant beds; she doesn't want them disturbed nor does she want to accidentally run over a horny toad...
...something which I have done in my youth while mowing the yard and always made me feel very, very bad 'cause I love them so much. It's about as close as I can come to understanding someone's love for snakes, I suppose.
I don't think there are many fire ants up this way, think it gets a little too cold for them to flourish, but I could be wrong, which is, as always, a distinct possibility. (I'm a human Wiki) I will find that information and duly report back!
I was absolutely delighted to have caught this one and it was fun to show it to all the little ones there at my cuz's place. I take some pretty crappy photos normally, but that camera has a pretty darn good macro setting on it.
Thanks for posting!
I added the first "snap" shot I took, didn't even check the settings. As fast as those little boogers are, I figgered I hadn't a prayer of catching it.
That camera was worth what I paid for it with the large version of that last photo, IMHO. I'm going to print some of these off.
I love horny toads.
very interesting
never seen any toads
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