The Texas horned lizard, or frog, is not just TCU's revered mascot. In the wild, it's an endangered species which Texas Parks and Wildlife is trying to preserve.
To that end, more than 200 hatchlings were released into wild environments across Texas over the weekend. Half of the hatchlings came from the Fort Worth Zoo which is part of a coalition of zoos and wildlife scientists that is working on behalf of the horned lizard.
For more than 10 years, the Texas Horned Lizard Coalition, including the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, TCU, and Zoos in Fort Worth, Dallas, San Antonio and elsewhere has been studying how to restore Texas horned lizards to formerly occupied habitats.
Just last month, after years of captive-raised hatchling releases, TPWD biologists and graduate students discovered a breakthrough milestone. In central Texas, they found 18 hatchlings believed to be the offspring of zoo-raised hatchlings released in 2019.
To their knowledge, this marks the first time that captive-reared horned lizards have survived long enough to successfully reproduce in the wild.
LISTEN on the Audacy App
Tell your Smart Speaker to "PLAY 1080 KRLD"
Sign Up to receive our KRLD Insider Newsletter for more news
Follow us on Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | YouTube