Scientific name: Phrynosoma Solare
Another Sonoran Desert resident. The regal horned lizard gets part of it's scientific name (Solare) from the shape of the spiky crown around it's head. Solare meaning sun, this is the only horned lizard to have a continuous "spiky" crown around it's head. Most types of horned lizards have a gap between the largest of the back spikes around their heads; which consequently, made it easier for me to figure out the exact type of horned lizards this one was.
Horned lizards love to eat ants but will eat any small insect that they can catch. Ants make up about 80% of their diet, and it could be the cause that their blood is distasteful to some predators.
Horned lizards are famous for squirting blood from their eyes in order to avoid becoming lunch. They have special pores under their eyelids which squirt blood on command. I guess it's sort of like when I tear up to avoid a traffic infraction, except well, they use blood and aim right for the predator's eyes and mouth, and I just cry regular tears and go for the heartstrings ;D
Notice that this little guy is covered in Desert Indianwheat seeds. The seeds are pink/purplish with a concave dark maroon middle. It took me a little while to figure out what those pinkish seeds were (I triple checked, they are seeds).
This is the first time I have ever seen an all gray horned lizard, I was truly over the moon about finding this little critter.
It has a beautiful gray and almost translucent armor. I find it's coloration beautiful. He does look like a little dragon!!
Thank you as always for stopping by, I hope you enjoyed this post as much as I did making it. :)
It a perfect camouflage that it has. I think I wouldn't be able to spot it unless really searching for it. The thing with blood is a little scary but as you explained it could be just like tears. I assume it doesn't cause them pain. I can imagine that you were over the moon. I would be too :)
Your photos are very good. It looks like this little beautiful creature would be posing just for you :)
Thank you for sharing and have a lovely day!
I have no idea how I was able to spot this guy, and I don't hope to get this lucky again but I will keep on going out there as much as I possibly can to see what else I can find. It's super hot out right now and the sun makes me sick, it's a struggle but it's worth it. I just go for short trips and have gotten so lucky! Thank you so much for your comment, I truly appreciate your support. Thanks! :)
Great photos of this amazing animal! I don't see a lot of reptiles here in the northeast. Thanks for sharing.
I would imagine reptiles would favor the heat of the southwest a lot more but I surely don’t lol I miss the east coast, specially now that’s around 100 degrees Fahrenheit ugh
They looked like iguanas except iguanas are vegetarians, unlike the lizard. This is such a nice post. You would wonder how these creatures survive the harsh weather in the desert. They symbolize beauty and determination.
Well done. Being featured by curie is really an honor and I know you are proud of it.
Cheers!
I too am amazed at how they can survive such harsh weather. Thank you so much for taking the time to stop by and comment :)
When I was a little boy, living on base at Fort Hood Texas, we had horny toads everywhere. That's what we called them. I would go down by the creek and catch them all day long. I believe they are on the endangered species list now. So sad. 🙏
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Hi Wonderwop, thanks for your comment! I agree with you, it’s sad to hear these creatures are now endangered, specially the ones you were used to seeing. The particular type that I have photographed is not listed as endangered but the Texas horned lizard is. Such a sad thing to happen.
I think it was because of the use of DDT pesticides. I'm glad to hear that yours is not endangered. 🤞
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Me too! So far so good, hopefully it’s stays that way.
I like it's defence mechanism squirting blood from it's eyes. That must be quite off putting for any predators wanting to attack it. Some great photographs showing it's great camouflage blending into the surroundings.
Absolutely, otherwise it's almost defenseless. Most of it's defense mechanisms are pure bluff as it's actually rather harmless. Thank you so much for your comment, I truly apricate it!
I love them, omg they look like they are tiny dragons * ___ * !!! SO COOL !!!!!
I love dragons! Thank you for your comment :)
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Thank you for your vote!
Its a very different kind of lizard I must say, but its scary to me :(
Thank you for your comment. This lizard is actually meaning to look scary because in reality it is rather harmless. It's not a real threat to us at all, it just looks intimidating :) Thanks for stopping by!
Yeah very intimidating :P
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THANK YOU!!! I was happily shocked to see you upvoted my post again. I am absolutely humbled and thankful. You guys are awesome, thank you!
This is one of my favorite reptiles, the camouflage, the mini dragon appearance and the blood spilling eyes makes the so awesome and badass, I love how you capture this creature, it feels so natural, thanks for sharing!
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WOW THANK YOU!!! I am absolutely honored that you guys pick my humble post. THANK YOU!
Growing up in Mexico I had the liberty to experience the outdoors and developed a love of animals and nature. Although I have always loved photography, it wasn’t until recently that I was able to pursue my passion. I consider myself lucky to be able to experience and capture nature with my photographs.
I say I found this little guy by sheer luck and nothing else. I was so excited to see him (assuming it’s a he but I truly have no idea), it made enduring the intense heat well worth it. I love horned lizards, and for that reason I made sure to disturb it as little as possible (I was afraid to cause it to stress or cause it to run and spend precious energy doing so). I am so thankful that I got lucky and he stay put as long as he did. I can’t wait to go back and see what else I can find to share with you all. Thank you much for your love and support!@elfranz I would like to start by saying THANK YOU! I am amazed that someone liked my post and absolutely shocked that it was selected for the @curie Author Showcase.
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That's a cute lizard and good thing that it allows for a photo shoot lol.
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Yes Kendra! It's rather a docile lizard compared to most desert animals out here. It stayed put for most of it. Thank you for stopping by to check out this blog! :)
My town is working toward becoming a Texas Horned Lizard re-population zone. Such fascinating species of lizard, and I love how docile most of them are despite how they look.
Yes, you are absolutely right about them being docile. I was able to get pretty close to this little guy. I didn't want to stress him so I didn't linger long. It's so hot out here I feel bad for all the creatures even if they are desert creatures, I try to leave them be. I'm so glad to hear that your town is part of the recovery efforts, what a cool thing to be a part of. From what I understand, it seems to me that the invasive fire ant may be part of the reason the Texas Horned Lizard population declined. Fire ants kill and take over the harvest ant's territory, that may be a factor. Whatever the reason, I hope that Texas' efforts to bring them back work out. They are wonderful creatures.
The fire ants are one of the biggest contributors. Thankfully there has been a concerted effort to encourage native ant populations, educating people on what a fire ant looks like, and how to kill them with minimal impact on the local fauna. Still, we have a long way to go given how eager people are to poison anything that doesn't fit their mold of what beneficial is.
That is so sadly true, we are all too used to using pesticides for anything that annoys us. I try to grow my own veggies and I use bugs and lizards to take care of problem bugs, it's not 100 percent efficient but at least I'm not contributing to the problem. Thank you for your comment and for all the info. you have shared with us!
Thank you for your comment and for your efforts towards bringing them back!
you really took good pictures! I've never seen this kind of lizard, it seems to me like a baby dragon that is learning to fly but can't make it !! It makes tenderness. How about wheat seeds is an important detail? and how big is it? because it looks so small !!
congratulations and thanks for sharing with ushi @arosebunch
Thank you so much! I was so lucky to spot this beautiful lizard. I would say he was a young adult, probably around five inches long. The seeds come from a type of plant native to Asia called plantago ovata, known by other names such as desert indianwheat, blond plantain, ispaghula and blond psyllium. Natives here used to use this plant for it's medicinal properties and as food.
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Thank you so much for your kind vote! I appreciate it :)
Such amazingly cool creatures! Love this post. But I hate to break it to you, those aren't seeds around the neck area of the lizard... they are tick nymphs sucking on the lizard's blood
No way!! They are scattered all over the ground! When you see the photos on high resolution you can see them better. I sure hope I’m right on this one ugh
Well I hope you are right :) Google ticks and lizards though - it is super common to see ticks and tick nymphs on lizards, and usually around the neck area. I have ran into it many times myself is why I said it
He’s gotten all over but I did noticed they were scattered all over the ground. Believe me, at first I thought the same. Desert Indianwheat is that plant he was right next to. I am sure hoping that’s the case but I’m going to look into it just to be sure. I might have to go looking for him to scratch them off lol
Excellent quality of photos, they look super sharp and clear, you are very good with the camera👏👏💖