But horned lizards know how to get the sympathy vote from adults, too. After all, they don't hurt anyone, except for the ants they prey on. They're also endangered. This is due, in part, to pesticides used to control introduced fire ants. Another problem is that horned lizards are too darned likeable.
Habitat loss is still another threat.
Many adults probaby like horned lizards simply because kids like them. Anyone who saw the Walt Disney movie Old Yeller as a child knows what horny toads mean to kids. But horned lizards were touching Texans' hearts long before Americans were crying over Old Yeller. A courthouse built in 1897 is about to be demolished to make way for a newer model. Three thousand people are on hand to watch the opening of the cornerstone.