Enjoy the moment.
Give it space and watch quietly. Leave it in its habitat instead of picking it up, taking it home, or moving it somewhere that seems better. Kids can look closely with an adult nearby.
A LITTLE ROOM GOES A LONG WAY
Helping horny toads stick around.
A chance encounter. A patch of good habitat. A sighting shared with researchers. There are several ways to help, whether someone owns a ranch or simply enjoys a walk outdoors.
THE FUN OF FINDING ONE
Found a horny toad?
Take a picture.
A photo taken without disturbing the lizard can help with identification. Note the date and location for a sighting record. Keep pets back, and stay out of traffic.
Make the sighting count.
Texas Parks & Wildlife uses iNaturalist projects to gather wildlife observations. Its instructions explain how to contribute. Avoid posting precise locations publicly; check location privacy before sharing.
Report through Texas Nature TrackersObserving and habitat guidance: TPWD’s Texas Horned Lizard Watch brochure (PDF).
ROOM TO LIVE
A home is more than a hiding place.
Horny toads need food, shelter, and ground they can dig into. Keeping those pieces together matters more than making a yard look tidy.
Keep some ground open.
A mix of native grasses, scattered plants, and open soil provides places to forage and take cover. A solid lawn or a completely cleared lot doesn’t offer the same variety.
Leave room for native ants.
Harvester ants are an important food source. Avoid blanket insecticide treatments in horned-lizard habitat. Native harvester ants and invasive fire ants are different animals.
Keep pets from hunting.
Supervise dogs and keep cats from roaming through wildlife habitat. A small lizard’s camouflage offers little protection from a persistent pet.
Notice the small travelers.
Move slowly on private tracks through known habitat and watch before mowing or clearing. Roads and vehicles can be dangerous for an animal this hard to spot.
Habitat advice: Texas Parks & Wildlife. Pets and conservation: Horned Lizard Conservation Society. Changes can improve habitat, but they don’t guarantee lizards will return.
HELPING THEM RETURN
There’s careful work behind a comeback.
Hatched with a future in mind.
Texas Parks & Wildlife, researchers, and partner zoos have worked together to raise and release Texas horned lizards. Monitoring after release helps reveal whether the animals survive and establish a population.
Releases take planning and suitable habitat. Moving wild lizards from one property to another isn’t a substitute for that work.
Read TPWD’s account of the programProgram background · September 2021Landowners have a part to play.
San Antonio Zoo works with private landowners to identify suitable release sites in places where horned lizards once lived. Its team assesses habitat and follows the lizards after release.
The project’s official page is a starting point for learning about the work and ways to support it.
Explore the zoo’s reintroduction projectSan Antonio Zoo · Center for Conservation & ResearchFOLLOW THE PROGRESS
The next chapter is still being written.
The Toad Times brings together verified reports from researchers and conservation groups.
Sources checked October 7, 2026.