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Texas Horny Toad


Gilbert

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Fresh from the ranch, where the kids were able to see, and hold their first Horned Toad (aka Horny Toad; akaTorito de la Virgen).

I was pleased that my little girls got to see this little fella eating-up some big red ants. The kids chased him down, caught him and held him for a few min. before letting back go.

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Never seen one in person before, I see why they got that name, hope the girls watch out for snakes out there. [:|]

EDIT; Didn't see the second pic, almost looks more like a lizard.

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I remember someone bringing one to school from time to time in grade school. We called them "horny toads" back then. My son is about to start his second year at TCU, where they call (what I believe to be the same thing) them "horned frogs". But yeah, they always seemed more like some kind of lizard to me.

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Here's another photo that might help to show their shape a little better. They're really roundish (circular) at the belly area, and can lay down quite flat. This little fella is about 2 1/2" to 3" in diameter at the belly. The boys have color on their tummy. If you spook'em, they play dead and their eye's will ooze a tiny drop of blood.

I hear yea on the snakes, thanks. I kept harping at the girls to be careful while storming through the brush. My eldest little one, Jordan (11 yrs., the one with long hair), is fearless, and will try and catch anything she can fit in a shoe box. She worries me the most, and has caught snakes, only to bring them to me and ask what kind they are..... that scares the hell out of me.

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So many years ago, when I was a kid, these were very common in the Dallas area. Then all of a sudden they disappeared.

Was that about the time the interstate completely encompassed the Dallas/Ft. Worth area?

I would guess about that time... As a kid, we would go out into the "woods" and find horny toads, snakes and all kinds of interesting creatures. The coming of the "big roads" may have played a part in it all.
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Back in the early 60's in Oak Cliff, we would find them in the flower beds. You can turn them over and rub their bellies and they will kinda go to sleep. Like Boxx said, they stopped being around in the late 60's. The last one we saw was in an RV park around Amarillo about 5 years ago, he was about as big as the one in the picture. He had ants crawling all around and on him, he would eat some every so often as if nothing was wrong. It was probably 105 degrees in temp, and he seemed happy.

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Pesticides and fire ants are the culprit I believe. Those big red ants Gilbert mentions? They are gone around here now thanks to fire ants. I have been seeing some type of much larger lizard around lately. I'm not sure if it is a native or not.

Speaking of fire ants.... No matter what the project, I step on a mound everytime I'm working in the yard. Geezzee....
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Pesticides and fire ants are the culprit I believe. Those big red ants Gilbert mentions? They are gone around here now thanks to fire ants.

The old ranchers (don't know any young ranchers) say this also, and mainly blame the Fire Ants. I suppose that since there's not that much ranch land used for farming crops in our area (too dry), pesticides are not as big a problem as further up north.

We still have plenty of big Red Ants and Black Ants down here (about 1.5 to 2cm long), but the Fire Ant numbers always seem to be on the increase.

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They are gone around here now thanks to fire ants.

Woopee...

Dave

The Fire Ants bite is far worse, and the big ants aren't nearly as aggressive, actually, the big ones aren't aggressive at all... and I've never heard of anyone having the big ants in their home, they're not invassive at all.

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Nice pic Gilbert the girls are really growing up. I remember finding horn toads right in the dirt roads near our house on Garfield St. We used to kill red ants by lighting hot wheel tracks on fire and letting the hot plastic melt onto them as they walked the trail to their hole. Sometimes being the insane kids we were we would kill them individually by snapping them with a cut rubber band. That was until by buddy Steve zinged one that hit my lip and it got swollen then we chose alternate methods.

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In elementary school we used to take bobbins of thread from our mothers sewing boxes and tie the thread around the big red ants from the playground. In class we would let them walk around as we played out line. Eventually we would reel them back in. We also made boats out of index cards on the ant scale and let them sail on their "yachts." I really miss those big red ants.

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In elementary school we used to take bobbins of thread from our mothers sewing boxes and tie the thread around the big red ants from the playground. In class we would let them walk around as we played out line. Eventually we would reel them back in. We also made boats out of index cards on the ant scale and let them sail on their "yachts." I really miss those big red ants.

I heard that this was really popular in the late 1920's.... Just kidding....
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