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The greater short-horned lizard is often mistaken for its close relative the pygmy short-horned lizard (Phrynosoma douglasii), which has the same basic body type consisting of small pointed scales around the head and back. [3] Until recent mitochondrial DNA evidence, P. hernandesi was considered to be the same species as P. douglasii.
Juvenile Iberian green woodpecker eating ants. Myrmecophagy is found in several land-dwelling vertebrate taxa, including reptiles and amphibians (horned lizards and blind snakes, narrow-mouthed toads of the family Microhylidae and poison frogs of the Dendrobatidae), some New World bird species (Antbirds, Antthrushes, Antpittas, flicker of genus Colaptes), and mammalian groups including ...
Even tiny birds like robins are a threat. Larger lizards and snakes will sometimes try to eat it as well. Like many other skinks, its tail will drop if grasped roughly. The disconnected tail will twitch vigorously for a while, capturing the attention of the predator while the lizard makes its escape.
Ants may form a prominent part of the diet of some lizards, particularly among the lacertas. [6] [42] Horned lizards are also well known for specializing on ants. Due to their small size and indigestible chitin, ants must be consumed in large amounts, and ant-eating lizards have larger stomachs than even herbivorous ones. [44]
Adult males and females have different diets only during breeding season, where males consume ants and plants in the mornings, whilst females feed on ants and other insects throughout the day. [ 8 ] The Coachella Valley fringe-toed lizards are talented as they are able to identify when there is an arthropod present underground, and dig them out ...
Many of the small species feed mostly on insects, with some being small lizard experts. Many of the medium to large species feed on whatever prey they can catch. This includes eggs, fish ( V. mertensi ), birds, snails, smaller lizards, snakes, marsupials, and other small mammals, such as rodents.
Phrynosoma species do not eat fire ants. Fire ants kill many species of wildlife, and are fierce competitors against the native ants, which horned lizards require for food (with their specialized nutritional content). Fire ants have given all ants a bad reputation, and human attempts to eradicate ants, including invasive species and the native ...
It is sometimes referred to as the prairie lizard, fence swift, gray lizard, gravid lizard, northern fence lizard or pine lizard. [4] It is also referred to colloquially as the horn-billed lizard. One of its most notable behaviors is that of its escape behavior when encountering fire ants, which have been known to invade and negatively affect ...