JULY, 1900. 
NATURAL HISTORY NOTES. 
185 
NATURAL HISTORY NOTES. 
Notes on the Habits of the Mexican Horned Toad^ (Phrynosoma 
orhiculare,) m captivity. BY P. H. DERNEHL— 
Peculiar to the cold and dry regions of the Mexican plateau, 
where it inhabits sandy spots exposed to the sun, this lizard is 
frequently brought into our northern homes and markets. At 
various times I have received specimens, in an apparently 
healthy condition, sent to me from Mexico, through the mail, 
packed between layers of cotton in pasteboard boxes. 
Those which I kept I provided with a large box on the front 
side of which I had arranged a wire netting admitting ample air 
and light. This cage I placed upon the veranda roof where the 
sun might strike it from all sides. They seemed to enjoy lying 
in the sun and basking for hours at a time and they were then 
quite active. On cold days or at night I found the creatures 
to be rather torpid and they then sought a small grotto, arranged 
within the cage, remaining within this seclusion until enticed to 
leave by the warmth of the day. They never attempted to bury 
in the sand which I had placed to a depth of eight inches upon 
the floor of their cage. 
They permitted themselves to be handled without attempting 
to bite the hand that seized them or showing their disapproval in 
any other way. 
Their food consisted mainly of flies. I used a wire fly trap 
to catch the flies, and when it was well filled with insects emptied 
the contents into the creatures' cage. The flies upon being thus 
liberated crawled to the wire front of the cage and crawled up 
and down it, and immediately upon noticing, the flies within their 
domain the lizards would come close to the front and crouch 
down, in the manner of a cat, preparing for a spring, closely 
watching every move of the flies, and whenever an insect came 
within their immediate reach they would make a quick dart at it 
and though rather awkward in doing so, seldom missed their 
mark. Various beetles and other insects that were oflFered them 
at intervals were refused. I never noticed my specimens to 
drink from a small basin filled with water and kept in their cage, 
though I lay for hours at a time watching them through a small 
circular hole in the back of their cage. 
