Horned Toad, Head-on
Horned Toad, Head-on
Horned lizards are a genus (Phrynosoma) of lizards which are the type genus of the family Phrynosomatidae. The horned lizard is popularly called a "horned toad", "horny toad" or "horned frog", yet it is neither a toad nor a frog. The popular names come from the lizard's rounded body and blunt snout, which make it resemble a toad or frog. The spines on its back and sides are made from modified scales, whereas the horns on the heads are true horns (i.e. they have a bony core). Of 15 species of horned lizards in North America, eight are native to the United States. The largest-bodied and most widely distributed of the US species is the Texas horned lizard. Horned lizards are morphologically similar to the Australian thorny devil, but are only distantly related. They also have other similarities, such as being sit-and-wait predators and preying upon ants, so the two species are considered a great example of convergent evolution.
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