Why they're awesome: Greater short-horned lizards have a squat, flat shape and short snouts, which makes them look more like amphibians than reptiles — hence the nickname "horny toads." But these ...

Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. I write about biodiversity and the hidden quirks of the natural world. In the arid plains and rocky deserts of North America, a ...

Some animal adaptations look like they were designed by a committee of mad scientists. The greater short-horned lizard (Phrynosoma hernandesi)-Wyoming's state reptile, also dubbed the "horny toad" ...

Texas Horned Lizards, usually called “horned toads,” are not amphibians at all but reptiles, little lizards. They used to be common in Oklahoma but have nearly disappeared from many areas because of ...

KENEDY, Texas — "We couldn't wait to get home, change our clothes and go play with the Horned Toads," says Lisa Yaklin. She grew up in Kenedy, Texas... now designated as the 'Horned Toad Capital of ...

Maybe it’s a butterfly you don’t see in your garden anymore, or a bird whose song you don’t hear in the summer. Many of us know of one or more animals we grew up with that just aren’t around anymore, ...

Oklahoma's scorching summer temperatures may cause many wildlife to retreat, but species like the Texas horned lizard enjoy soaking in the sun's rays. "Summer is the best season to watch for reptiles ...

STAMFORD — There’s probably not much chance that if you grew up in Texas and are of a certain age that you didn’t catch and keep a horned lizard as a pet. Of course, you called it a horny toad because ...

When it comes to creative survival tactics in the animal kingdom, few creatures can compete with a small, spiky reptile that weaponizes its own blood. The greater short-horned lizard (Phrynosoma ...

OKLAHOMA CITY — The legend goes something like this: In 1897, the good people of Eastland, Texas, put a time capsule in the cornerstone of the courthouse being built downtown. In went a Bible, some ...