It is one of fourteen species of horned lizards, unique iguanians belonging to the clade Phrynosomatidae.
Horned lizards are readily distinguished from other lizards by their wide dorso-ventrally flattened body, skull adorned with a crown of horns, and spiny skin.
The diet of Phrynosoma cornutum consists of 69% harvester ants, with the remainder comprised of termites, beetles, and grasshoppers.
Until recently, almost 1,000 species, including those in Phrynosomatidae, were placed in Iguanidae (sensu lato), but Frost and Etheridge's (1989) analysis of iguanian systematics suggested eight monophyletic clades within that large family.
They proposed new family status for these eight clades, including Phrynosomatidae (and a much reduced Iguanidae (sensu stricto).
Most researchers agree that the iguanian families that were not previously members of Iguanidae -- Agamidae and Chamaeleonidae -- form the monophyletic group Acrodonta, which is sister to the remaining families (equivalent to Iguanidae sensu lato, of which Phrynosomatidae is a member).
Feeds |
Contact