Fort Worth Zoo releases record-breaking number of Texas horned lizards

The Fort Worth Zoo announced the release of a record number of Texas horned lizards back into their natural environment this year on its X account.

Out of the 617 horned lizards that were hatched at the Fort Worth Zoo, 301 were released at Mason Mountain Wildlife Management Area, as part of the zoo’s conservation program with Texas Parks and Wildlife Department and other zoo partners.

As pioneers in breeding Texas horned lizards, the Fort Worth Zoo also maintains the largest group of these reptiles under human care, according to a news release.

Since the lizard project began in 2011, the zoo has refined breeding and care protocols, which are now used by various organizations across Texas.

“The more we study and learn about horned lizard behavior, reproduction, and interactions with other organisms and communities within their preferred habitat, the faster we can decipher key factors for the establishment of populations in new areas,” said Diane Barber, senior curator of ectotherms.

According to Texas Parks and Wildlife, this species is also known as a horny toad. The lizard features several noticeable horns, with two central spines that are significantly longer than the others. It is brownish and adorned with two rows of fringed scales on either side of its body.

The species — classified as threatened in Texas — is found from the south-central United States down to northern Mexico, covering some portions of Oklahoma, Kansas and New Mexico, according to Texas Parks and Wildlife. Its habitat is arid and semiarid environments, typically in open areas with limited vegetation. The lizards often live in loose sand or loamy soils, which allow them to dig for hibernation, nesting and insulation.

The conservation success was in collaboration with the Dallas Zoo, Caldwell Zoo, Fossil Rim Wildlife Center and Pearland Nature Center.