Horned lizard

Philip didn't want to get as early a start as we have been doing on vacation, so while we were waiting for our pre-arranged time, we went to have a look at the outdoor exhibits at the New Mexico Museum of Space History. Having met up with Philip, we drove S.W. towards Las Cruces, through the Organ Mountains. Once through the mountains we went hiking up into the mountains at Baylor Pass. It was a great hike, through high desert scenery, with small trees, cactus and yucca plants, climbing about 1500 feet in about 3.5 miles. At the top, the view encompassed the Mesilla Valley (Las Cruces and Rio Grande) and Tularodsa Valley (White Sands Missile Range, White Sands National Monument), the Sacramento Escarpment and Sierra Blanca, the highest mountain in Southern NM, at 12,000 ft. We hadn't been going very long, when Philip spotted one of these horned lizards (best viewed large) - I'm glad he saw it, as I don't think I'd have noticed it, since as you can see it blends very well into its surroundings. We saw another one a bit higher up. Horned Lizards are creatures of hot, dry, sandy environments and are found only in the western portions of the United States and Mexico. There are 14 recognized species, 8 of which are found within the continental U.S. They range from Arkansas to the Pacific Coast, and from British Columbia south to Guatemala. Some of the species inhabit the deserts proper where the sun, beating on the arid landscape, produces ground heat that is almost unbearable to humans. Others are found in mountainous areas and are found as high as 10,000 feet. The spines on its back and sides are made from modified scales, whereas the horns on the heads are true horns, that is they have a bony core. Horned lizards use a wide variety of means to avoid predation. As already mentioned, their coloration generally serves as camouflage. When threatened, their first defense is to remain still to avoid detection, however, if approached too closely, they generally run in short bursts and stop abruptly to confuse the predator's visual acuity. If this fails, they puff up their body to cause it to look more horny, making it appear larger and more difficult to swallow. At least four species are also able to squirt an aimed stream of blood from the corners of the eyes for a distance of up to five feet! After our hike, Philip took us to one of his favorite restaurants - a Thai restaurant. It didn't look much from the outside, but the food was very good. Then we went to the mall to watch a movie - we saw Courageous, which I hadn't heard of before, but it was very good.

One year ago: Sunny morning in the park