For generations, the Texas horny toad was a backyard pet. As they disappeared, fond childhood memories of these creatures have become a symbol for conservation in Texas.
The Fort Worth Zoo championed conservation efforts, beginning its horned lizard conservation program in 2011 in partnership with Texas Parks and Wildlife, other Texas zoos and TCU to reintroduce the species to its native habitat.
The zoo has since continued raising hatchlings and releasing them into the wild about four hours southwest of Fort Worth at Mason Mountain Wildlife Management Area in Mason County — an ideal location as it neighbors one of the remaining natural populations of lizards.
The zoo recently hatched its 2,000th lizard and plans for a release in September, said Diane Barber, Fort Worth Zoo’s senior curator of ectotherms…