Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Lighthouse Hike (Part 2)

It was getting warmer as we hiked back from the Lighthouse, and the lizards and butterflies were enjoying the sunshine. Our first find was a Texas Horned Lizard sunning itself on the trail. "Horny Toads" were pretty common when we were kids, but they are now listed as threatened in the state. Loss of habitat and the accidental introduction of Red Imported Fire Ants have caused real problems for these guys.






We came across a real show-stopper a bit further down the trail. This amazing Collared Lizard, (aka Common Collared Lizard) was sunning itself on a sandy spot alongside the trail. This was a nice male, and the males are said to be highly territorial. Our attention didn't seem to bother him at all, and he remained on his spot as we hiked on.







As the weather warmed, we did see a few butterflies, including this Dainty Sulphur and Checkered White.





All-in-all, a great morning's hike!

4 comments:

  1. Cool header, and the colors of the lizard are amazing.

    ReplyDelete
  2. He was a beauty, and so cooperative. Just before I got the camera ready a mountain biker came by, and I was certain that the lizard would take off. Nope. He sat right there!!

    Mark

    ReplyDelete
  3. We saw huge numbers of Checkered Whites between the Valley and Kerrville last week. Continuous streams of them flowing in front of the vehicle, mostly flying west to east. -Rick

    ReplyDelete
  4. We "collected" quite a few on the front of the truck and trailer as we drove north from the Valley to Medina. It is amazing that there are any left!!

    Mark

    ReplyDelete