Texas Horned Lizard

The Texas horned lizard is one of about 14 North American species of spikey-bodied reptiles called horned lizards, all belonging the genus Phrynosoma. P. cornutum ranges from Colorado and Kansas to northern Mexico, and from southeastern Arizona to Texas. Also, isolated introduced populations are found in the Carolinas, Georgia, and Florida. Most records of the Texas horned lizard from the Piney Woods region of east Texas, Louisiana, and Arkansas are from the early and mid-twentieth century, a time when horned lizard were popular pets, and are thought to represent released or escaped pets and not the species natural range. Though some populations are stable, severe population declines have occurred in many areas of Texas and Oklahoma.