For the First Time, Researchers Find Captive-bred Horny Toads That Survived Winter in the Wild

For the first time ever, researchers have found captive-bred Texas horned lizard hatchlings alive after winter hibernation. It's a big win for the state reptile, which has vanished from Texas landscapes over the last several decades.New technology has allowed the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department officials to track the tiny hatchlings more accurately than ever before. In the past, hatchlings were nearly impossible to track after release, and all died within a few months. Even in good conditions, Texas horned lizards have a high mortality rate. Previous efforts to release wild-caught and captive-bred adults have met limited success, and researchers have tried to release hundreds of hatchlings at a time in recent years.  Continue reading...