{"wildlife/wildlife":[{"id":"copperhead","name":"Southern Copperhead","scientific":"Agkistrodon contortrix","wiki":"Agkistrodon_contortrix","group":"snake","origin":"native","danger":"venomous","dangerNote":"VENOMOUS. Hourglass-shaped dark bands (wide on the sides, narrow across the back), a copper-tan head, vertical cat-like pupils, and a heat-sensing pit between eye and nostril. Bites are rarely fatal but need medical care.","idTips":"A thick-bodied pit viper with a coppery-tan body crossed by dark, Hershey's-Kiss / hourglass-shaped bands that are widest on the sides and pinch narrow over the back. Head is unmarked copper. Young have a bright yellow tail tip. Often freezes rather than fleeing, relying on camouflage in leaf litter.","habitat":"Woodlands, {bayou} edges, suburban mulch and leaf litter, brush piles, and flower beds across {place}.","diet":"Ambush predator of mice, frogs, lizards, small birds and large insects like cicadas.","facts":["Its hourglass bands are wide on the sides and narrow over the spine, like a Hershey's Kiss seen from the side.","It is one of the most common venomous snakes in {place} suburbs, often found in leaf litter and mulched beds.","Juveniles wiggle a bright yellow tail tip to lure frogs and lizards within striking range.","It usually freezes and relies on camouflage, so most bites happen when a snake is stepped on or grabbed."],"range":"PINEY CP MARSH POST 32b"},{"id":"cottonmouth","name":"Cottonmouth (Water Moccasin)","scientific":"Agkistrodon piscivorus","wiki":"Agkistrodon_piscivorus","group":"snake","origin":"native","danger":"venomous","dangerNote":"VENOMOUS. A thick dark water snake that gapes to show a cotton-white mouth lining when threatened. Vertical pupils and a blocky head. Swims with its whole body riding on top of the water.","idTips":"A heavy-bodied, dark olive-to-black semi-aquatic pit viper, often with faint darker bands. The blocky head is distinctly wider than the neck. When cornered it coils and gapes open to flash the white 'cotton' interior of its mouth. Swims high on the water surface, unlike harmless water snakes that ride low.","habitat":"Swamps, {bayou}s, ponds, drainage ditches and wet bottomlands throughout the {place} area.","diet":"Fish, frogs, other snakes, small mammals and carrion. One of the few snakes that eats carrion.","facts":["Its open-mouth 'cotton' threat display is its most distinctive warning sign.","It swims with its body riding on top of the water; harmless water snakes swim mostly submerged.","It and its close relative the Florida cottonmouth are the only venomous water snakes in the U.S., and it is often confused with harmless water snakes.","It stands its ground more than most snakes but still prefers to escape when it can."],"factRefs":{"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Agkistrodon piscivorus","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agkistrodon_piscivorus"}]},"range":"ALL -25i -24f -24b -26c -23a"},{"id":"coral-snake","name":"Texas Coral Snake","scientific":"Micrurus tener","wiki":"Micrurus_tener","group":"snake","origin":"native","danger":"venomous","dangerNote":"VENOMOUS (potent neurotoxin). Red, yellow and black rings that FULLY encircle the body, with red touching yellow. 'Red touches yellow, kill a fellow; red touches black, friend of Jack.' Small and shy with a blunt black snout.","idTips":"A slender snake ringed in red, yellow (thin) and black bands that go all the way around the body. The order is the key: on a coral snake, RED bands touch YELLOW bands. Snout is black. Small mouth and short, fixed front fangs. Bites are uncommon but serious: a quick bite can deliver venom, so get emergency care even if you feel fine at first.","habitat":"Leaf litter, under logs and boards, and in gardens; secretive and mostly active at dawn, dusk and after rain.","diet":"Mainly other small snakes and lizards.","facts":["Its rhyme: 'Red touches yellow, kill a fellow.' On U.S. coral snakes, red bands touch yellow bands. The rhyme doesn't work for coral snakes in other countries.","Its harmless mimics (milk snake, scarlet snake) have red touching BLACK instead.","It carries a potent neurotoxic venom but is shy and bites rarely.","It is {place}'s only venomous snake that is NOT a pit viper. It has round pupils and no facial pit."],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Coral snake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coral_snake"}]},"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Texas coral snake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_coral_snake"},{"label":"Wikipedia: Coral snake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coral_snake"}],"range":"ALL -27h -25i -24f -24b -26c -23a"},{"id":"rat-snake","name":"Texas Rat Snake","scientific":"Pantherophis obsoletus","wiki":"Pantherophis_obsoletus","group":"snake","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS (non-venomous). Long and slender with round pupils and a blotched, not banded, pattern. Will rear and musk if cornered, but has no venom.","idTips":"A long (up to 6 ft), slender snake with irregular dark blotches on a gray-to-yellowish body and a somewhat squared-off head. Round pupils. Often climbs trees and buildings after birds and eggs. Bluffs by vibrating its tail and musking, but is non-venomous.","habitat":"Woods, barns, suburban yards, attics and trees across {place}. Our most frequently seen large snake.","diet":"A constrictor that eats rodents, birds and eggs. A valuable natural rat control.","facts":["It is one of the most common large snakes in {place} and an excellent rodent controller.","It is a strong climber and often found in attics and bird boxes hunting eggs.","Despite a fierce bluff, it is completely non-venomous and harmless to people.","It has round pupils and a blotched pattern. Not the bands of a copperhead or the gape of a cottonmouth."],"range":"ALL -24f -24b -23a"},{"id":"water-snake-diamondback","name":"Diamondback Water Snake","scientific":"Nerodia rhombifer","wiki":"Nerodia_rhombifer","group":"snake","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS (non-venomous): the snake most often mistaken for a cottonmouth. Swims low in the water with only its head showing, has round pupils, and flees rather than gaping.","idTips":"A heavy brown water snake with a net-like (diamond) pattern of dark markings down the back. Round pupils and no facial pit. Basks on branches over water and dives when approached. Often killed on sight as a 'water moccasin' despite being harmless.","habitat":"Bayous, ponds, ditches and lake edges throughout the {place} area.","diet":"Fish and frogs, which it grabs rather than constricts.","facts":["It is the harmless water snake most often mistaken for and killed as a cottonmouth.","It swims mostly submerged with just its head up; a cottonmouth rides high on the surface.","It has round pupils and no heat-sensing pit between the eye and nostril. Head shape is not a reliable clue, because it flattens its head when threatened.","When grabbed it bites and musks freely but has no venom."],"range":"ALL -25i -24f -24b -23a"},{"id":"green-anole","name":"Green Anole","scientific":"Anolis carolinensis","wiki":"Carolina_anole","group":"lizard","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS native lizard.","idTips":"Our only NATIVE anole: a slender lizard that can change from bright green to brown, with a long tail, smooth skin, and a pink throat fan (dewlap) in males. Narrow, pointed snout. Climbs smooth surfaces and leaves with sticky toe pads. Being pushed out of yards by the invasive brown anole.","habitat":"Shrubs, fences, walls and gardens; prefers to perch higher in vegetation, especially now that brown anoles dominate the ground.","diet":"Small insects and spiders; a beneficial garden predator.","hosts":[],"facts":["It is the only anole native to the United States and is sometimes called the 'American chameleon' for its color change.","Unlike a true chameleon, it changes between green and brown based on temperature, mood and health, not to match any background.","The invasive brown anole is pushing it higher into shrubs and trees.","Males flash a pink throat fan (dewlap) to defend territory and court females."],"range":"ALL -25i -24f -24b -26c -23a"},{"id":"brown-anole","name":"Brown Anole","scientific":"Anolis sagrei","wiki":"Brown_anole","group":"lizard","origin":"invasive","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS but INVASIVE; displaces the native green anole.","idTips":"A stocky brown lizard (never green) with a pale stripe or diamond/triangle pattern down the back and a ridged tail. Males have an orange-red dewlap with a yellow edge. Stays low. On the ground, sidewalks, low walls and planters. Native to Cuba and the Bahamas.","habitat":"Ground level in yards, sidewalks, mulch and container plants, especially in developed and nursery areas where it arrived on plants.","diet":"Insects, spiders, and even hatchling green anoles and its own young.","invasiveNote":"Introduced from the Caribbean via the nursery trade, it has exploded across the Gulf Coast. It outcompetes and even eats the hatchlings of the native green anole, forcing green anoles to retreat higher into vegetation.","facts":["It is never green; if a brown anole turns green you are actually looking at a green anole in its brown phase.","It arrived in Texas on nursery plants and spreads along the nursery and landscaping trade.","It eats the young of the native green anole, accelerating the green anole's decline near the ground.","Males display an orange dewlap with a yellow margin, unlike the solid pink dewlap of the green anole."],"range":"ALL -25i -24f -24b -26c -23a"},{"id":"virginia-opossum","name":"Virginia Opossum","scientific":"Didelphis virginiana","wiki":"Virginia_opossum","group":"mammal","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS. North America's only marsupial; 'plays possum' when frightened.","idTips":"A cat-sized gray mammal with a pointed white face, black leathery ears, a naked pink prehensile tail, and 50 teeth. Our only native marsupial. Females carry young in a pouch. Nocturnal and slow-moving; feigns death ('playing possum') when cornered.","habitat":"Woods, {bayou} corridors, and suburban yards, attics and under decks across {place}.","diet":"A true omnivore and scavenger: insects, snails, carrion, fruit, eggs and pet food.","facts":["It is the only marsupial native to North America. Females raise young in a pouch.","It has 50 teeth, more than any other North American land mammal.","Rabies is rare in opossums, possibly because of their low body temperature.","'Playing possum' is an involuntary faint, not an act. It can last for minutes.","It is highly resistant to the venom of rattlesnakes and other pit vipers.","Newborns are about the size of a honeybee and crawl into the pouch on their own.","Its hind feet have clawless, opposable 'thumbs' for gripping branches."],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Virginia opossum","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia_opossum"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Virginia opossum","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia_opossum"}],"4":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Virginia opossum","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia_opossum"}],"5":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Virginia opossum","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia_opossum"}],"6":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Virginia opossum","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virginia_opossum"}]},"noPhotoId":true,"range":"ALL -24f -24b -23a"},{"id":"nine-banded-armadillo","name":"Nine-banded Armadillo","scientific":"Dasypus novemcinctus","wiki":"Nine-banded_armadillo","group":"mammal","origin":"native","danger":"mild","dangerNote":"Can carry the bacterium that causes leprosy (Hansen's disease), which can pass to people. Don't handle armadillos or eat their meat.","idTips":"A house cat–sized mammal (about 5–14 lb) armored in bony plates, with about nine flexible bands around the midsection, a long snout, big ears and strong digging claws. Poor eyesight; roots noisily through leaf litter. Jumps straight up when startled.","habitat":"Woodlands, brushy bottomlands and suburban yards where it digs for insects.","diet":"Grubs, ants, termites, beetles and other soil insects, dug from the ground.","facts":["It almost always gives birth to identical quadruplets from a single egg.","It jumps vertically when startled. A reflex that unfortunately leads to many car strikes.","It can hold its breath to walk across stream bottoms or inflate its gut to float.","Its digging aerates soil but can frustrate gardeners hunting for the same grubs.","Despite the myth, it can't roll into a ball. Only its three-banded cousins can.","It crossed into Texas from Mexico in the 1800s and has spread north and east ever since.","It is one of the only animals besides people that naturally carries leprosy, so don't handle one."],"inat":"Dasypus mexicanus","refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Nine-banded armadillo","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nine-banded_armadillo"},{"label":"Wikipedia: Leprosy","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leprosy"}],"noPhotoId":true,"factRefs":{"4":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Nine-banded armadillo","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nine-banded_armadillo"}],"5":[{"label":"TSHA Handbook of Texas: Armadillo","url":"https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/armadillo"},{"label":"TPWD: Armadillos","url":"https://tpwd.texas.gov/publications/nonpwdpubs/introducing_mammals/armadillos/"}],"6":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Nine-banded armadillo","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nine-banded_armadillo"}]},"range":"ALL -24f -23a"},{"id":"eastern-cottontail","name":"Eastern Cottontail","scientific":"Sylvilagus floridanus","wiki":"Eastern_cottontail","group":"mammal","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","idTips":"A medium brown rabbit with large ears, rusty nape, and a fluffy white 'cotton ball' tail flashed when it runs. Freezes in place before bolting in a zigzag. Active at dawn and dusk.","habitat":"Brushy field edges, parks, and suburban yards with cover near open grass.","diet":"Grasses, clover, and tender garden greens. A common nibbler of vegetable beds.","facts":["Its white tail underside flashes as a 'follow me' signal that confuses predators.","It can have several litters a year, breeding from spring through early fall.","It relies on freezing and camouflage first, then an explosive zigzag sprint.","It is a key prey animal supporting hawks, owls, foxes and snakes."],"range":"ALL -24f -24b -23a"},{"id":"nutria","name":"Nutria","scientific":"Myocastor coypus","wiki":"Coypu","group":"mammal","origin":"invasive","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS to people but destructively INVASIVE in wetlands.","idTips":"A large (up to 20 lb) semi-aquatic rodent like a beaver with a round, thin, rat-like tail (not flat) and bright orange front teeth. Webbed hind feet. Seen swimming in {bayou}s and ditches or grazing on banks.","habitat":"Bayous, marshes, retention ponds and drainage ditches throughout the {place} area.","diet":"Aquatic and bankside plants; it eats the roots, destroying marsh vegetation.","invasiveNote":"Native to South America and introduced for the fur trade, nutria now damage Gulf Coast wetlands by eating out the roots of marsh plants, causing erosion and converting marsh to open water. They also burrow into levees and banks.","facts":["Its round, rat-like tail distinguishes it from the native beaver's flat paddle tail and the muskrat's smaller size.","Its front teeth are bright orange.","By eating marsh-plant roots it turns protective coastal marsh into open water.","It was brought from South America for fur farming and escaped into the wild."],"range":"ALL -25i -24f -24b -26c -23a"},{"id":"gulf-coast-toad","name":"Gulf Coast Toad","scientific":"Incilius nebulifer","wiki":"Incilius_nebulifer","group":"amphibian","origin":"native","danger":"mild","dangerNote":"Skin secretions can irritate eyes/mouth and are toxic to pets that bite it. Wash hands after handling.","idTips":"A flat-looking toad with a broad dark band down each side bordered by light stripes, deep ridges (cranial crests) forming a valley on top of the head, and prominent parotoid glands behind the eyes. Our most common backyard toad.","habitat":"Gardens, under porch lights (hunting insects), ditches and anywhere damp around {place} homes.","diet":"Beetles, ants, roaches, and other insects. A major natural pest controller at night.","facts":["It is the toad you hear trilling after warm rains and see hunting bugs under porch lights.","Its parotoid glands secrete a toxin that sickens dogs that mouth it. Rinse the pet's mouth with water.","The light stripe down its back and dark side bands are the quickest field marks.","A single toad eats thousands of insects a season, making it a gardener's ally."],"range":"ALL -25i -24f -24b -26c -23a"},{"id":"green-tree-frog","name":"Green Tree Frog","scientific":"Dryophytes cinereus","wiki":"American_green_tree_frog","group":"amphibian","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","idTips":"A small, slender, smooth bright-green frog usually with a crisp white or cream stripe down each side, and round sticky toe pads for climbing. Clings to windows, walls and broad leaves. Calls with a nasal 'quonk' on summer nights.","habitat":"Near ponds, marshes and water gardens; climbs onto windows and plants, especially after rain.","diet":"Flies, mosquitoes, moths and other small insects.","facts":["It is often called the 'rain frog' because it calls loudly before and after summer storms.","Its side stripe and sticky toe pads separate it from other green frogs.","It is a popular, hardy native often seen on lit windows catching insects.","It changes shade from bright green to gray-green with temperature and activity."],"range":"ALL -25i -24f -24b -26c -23a"},{"id":"western-ribbon-snake","name":"Western Ribbon Snake","scientific":"Thamnophis proximus","wiki":"Western_ribbon_snake","group":"snake","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS (non-venomous). Slender with three pale stripes and white spots in front of the eyes; may musk if handled.","idTips":"A slender, long-tailed snake with three pale stripes on a dark body. The stripe down the back is often orange or yellow, and there is a bright white spot in front of each eye. Its tail is about a third of its length.","habitat":"Pond and {bayou} edges, ditches, marshes and wet gardens; usually close to water.","diet":"Frogs, tadpoles, toads and small fish.","facts":["It is the common striped snake around {place}; the similar Common Garter Snake is rare here.","Its very long, thin tail is a good field mark against garter snakes.","It often escapes by gliding across the surface of the water.","It bears live young rather than laying eggs."],"range":"ALL -24f -24b -23a"},{"id":"american-alligator","name":"American Alligator","scientific":"Alligator mississippiensis","wiki":"American_alligator","group":"crocodilian","origin":"native","danger":"dangerous","dangerNote":"DANGEROUS. Stay at least 30 feet away, never feed one (it is illegal and teaches them to approach people), and keep pets and children away from the water’s edge.","idTips":"A large, armored reptile, dark olive to black, with a broad, rounded snout. Young are black with bright yellow crossbands. Adults commonly reach 8 to 12 feet.","habitat":"Bayous, lakes, marshes, retention ponds and rice canals; common at Brazos Bend, Anahuac and on the coast.","diet":"Fish, turtles, snakes, birds, nutria and other animals; young eat insects, crayfish and frogs.","facts":["It is a conservation success story: once endangered, it recovered after hunting was controlled.","The temperature of the nest decides whether the hatchlings are male or female.","Mothers guard their nests and carry hatchlings to the water in their mouths.","Its broad, rounded snout separates it from the narrow-snouted crocodiles.","Its eyes shine red when a flashlight hits them at night.","In a freeze it can survive in iced-over water by keeping just its nostrils poking through the ice.","During mating season, bulls bellow with sound so low it makes the water on their backs 'dance'."],"range":"EAST STX RGV 34i","noPhotoId":true,"factRefs":{"4":[{"label":"TPWD Young Naturalist: Eyeshine","url":"https://tpwd.texas.gov/publications/nonpwdpubs/young_naturalist/animals/eyeshine/index.phtml"}],"5":[{"label":"UGA Savannah River Ecology Lab: American Alligator","url":"https://srelherp.uga.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/70/2025/02/American-Alligator-FINAL-2.pdf"},{"label":"Oklahoma Dept. of Wildlife Conservation: American Alligator","url":"https://www.wildlifedepartment.com/wildlife/field-guide/reptiles/american-alligator"}],"6":[{"label":"Wikipedia: American alligator","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_alligator"}]}},{"id":"red-eared-slider","name":"Red-eared Slider","scientific":"Trachemys scripta elegans","wiki":"Red-eared_slider","inat":"Trachemys scripta","group":"turtle","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","idTips":"A medium freshwater turtle with a smooth olive-green shell and yellow stripes on the head and legs. Look for the red stripe behind each eye. Old males can turn dark all over.","habitat":"Ponds, lakes, {bayou}s and park lagoons; often basks in rows on logs.","diet":"Water plants, insects, snails and small fish; adults eat more plants.","facts":["It is native to Texas, though released pets have made it invasive around the world.","Rows of them sun on logs to warm up and dry their shells.","Males have very long front claws that they flutter in front of females during courtship.","It is the most common turtle in {place} ponds."],"range":"ALL -23a"},{"id":"three-toed-box-turtle","name":"Three-toed Box Turtle","scientific":"Terrapene triunguis","wiki":"Three-toed_box_turtle","group":"turtle","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","idTips":"A small land turtle with a high, domed, olive-brown shell and usually three toes on each hind foot. Males often have red or orange on the head. It can close its shell completely.","habitat":"Moist woods, thickets and wooded yards; often seen crossing roads after rain.","diet":"Earthworms, insects, snails, mushrooms, berries and fallen fruit.","facts":["A hinge on its lower shell lets it shut itself in like a box.","It can live more than 50 years.","It spends its whole life in a small home range, so moving one away can doom it.","It helps spread the seeds of the berries it eats."],"range":"EAST CROSS 30a 30c"},{"id":"mediterranean-house-gecko","name":"Mediterranean House Gecko","scientific":"Hemidactylus turcicus","wiki":"Mediterranean_house_gecko","group":"lizard","origin":"non-native","danger":"harmless","idTips":"A small, pale, almost see-through lizard with bumpy, warty skin and large eyes without eyelids. Its wide, sticky toe pads let it climb walls and windows.","habitat":"House walls, porch lights, windows and buildings at night.","diet":"Moths, crickets and other insects drawn to lights.","facts":["It is not native: it came from the Mediterranean region and is now common across Texas cities.","It hunts insects at porch lights at night.","It can shed its tail to escape and grow a new one.","It makes soft clicking or squeaking calls."],"range":"ALL -23a"},{"id":"dekays-brownsnake","name":"DeKay's Brownsnake","scientific":"Storeria dekayi","wiki":"DeKay's_brown_snake","group":"snake","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS (non-venomous). Small and brown with rows of dark dots; it rarely bites.","idTips":"A small brown snake, usually under a foot long, with two rows of dark dots down the back and a pale belly. Young have a pale collar.","habitat":"Gardens, flower beds, leaf litter and under boards and logs; common in yards.","diet":"Slugs, earthworms and snails.","facts":["It is one of the snakes {place} gardeners find most often.","It is a slug specialist, so it is a friend to gardeners.","It bears live young.","It is so small it is often mistaken for a worm."],"range":"EAST CENTRAL 25i"},{"id":"american-bullfrog","name":"American Bullfrog","scientific":"Lithobates catesbeianus","wiki":"American_bullfrog","group":"amphibian","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","idTips":"The largest frog in North America: green to olive, with a large round eardrum and a fold of skin curving around the eardrum, but no ridges down the back.","habitat":"Ponds, lakes and slow {bayou}s with plenty of vegetation.","diet":"Almost anything it can swallow: insects, crayfish, other frogs, small snakes, birds and mice.","facts":["Its call is a deep \"jug-o-rum\" that carries a long way on summer nights.","In males the eardrum is larger than the eye; in females it is about the same size.","Tadpoles can take two years to become frogs.","It has become an invasive pest in other parts of the world."],"range":"ALL -23a"},{"id":"southern-leopard-frog","name":"Southern Leopard Frog","scientific":"Lithobates sphenocephalus","wiki":"Southern_leopard_frog","group":"amphibian","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","idTips":"A slender green or brown frog with dark spots and two pale ridges running down the back. Often has a pale spot in the middle of the eardrum.","habitat":"Pond edges, wet meadows, ditches and marshes.","diet":"Insects, spiders and other small invertebrates.","facts":["Its call sounds like a rapid chuckle or rubbing a balloon.","It can leap several feet to escape into the water.","It often hunts in wet grass away from the water.","Its spots look a bit like a leopard’s."],"range":"EAST CENTRAL STX -31c -27h"},{"id":"blanchards-cricket-frog","name":"Blanchard's Cricket Frog","scientific":"Acris blanchardi","wiki":"Blanchard's_cricket_frog","group":"amphibian","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","idTips":"A tiny, warty frog, about an inch long, gray to brown with a dark triangle between the eyes and a ragged dark stripe on the back of the thigh.","habitat":"Muddy and grassy edges of ponds and streams.","diet":"Tiny insects and spiders.","facts":["Its call sounds like two pebbles clicked together, faster and faster.","It is one of the most common frogs in Texas.","It can jump many times its own length.","Despite the name, it is a tree frog that has given up climbing."],"range":"ALL -24f -24b -23a"},{"id":"squirrel-tree-frog","name":"Squirrel Tree Frog","scientific":"Dryophytes squirellus","wiki":"Squirrel_tree_frog","group":"amphibian","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","idTips":"A small, smooth tree frog that can be green or brown and change color. Often has a pale stripe along the upper lip and sticky toe pads.","habitat":"Yards, gardens, windows and porches near trees and water.","diet":"Insects caught around lights and leaves.","facts":["It is named for its squirrel-like scolding call.","It can change from green to brown in minutes.","It often calls before and after rain.","It is easily confused with the Green Tree Frog, which has a clean white side stripe."],"range":"COAST PINEY"},{"id":"gray-treefrog","name":"Gray Treefrog","scientific":"Dryophytes versicolor","wiki":"Gray_treefrog","group":"amphibian","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","idTips":"A medium tree frog with warty gray to green skin that blends with bark, a white spot under the eye, and bright orange-yellow under the hind legs.","habitat":"Woodlands and wooded yards near ponds.","diet":"Insects, spiders and snails.","facts":["It has a twin, Cope's Gray Treefrog, that can only be told apart by call or genetics.","It can survive being partly frozen in winter.","The flash of orange under its legs may startle predators.","Its call is a loud, musical trill."],"range":"PINEY POST CROSS"},{"id":"eastern-gray-squirrel","name":"Eastern Gray Squirrel","scientific":"Sciurus carolinensis","wiki":"Eastern_gray_squirrel","group":"mammal","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","idTips":"A gray squirrel with a white belly and a bushy, silver-edged tail. Smaller than the fox squirrel.","habitat":"Woodlands, parks and wooded neighborhoods.","diet":"Acorns, pecans and other nuts, seeds, buds, fungi and bird-feeder seed.","facts":["It buries thousands of nuts each fall and forgets many, planting new oaks.","It is the common squirrel of East Texas forests.","It can rotate its hind feet to climb down trees headfirst.","It remembers where it hid food partly by landmarks."],"range":"EAST CROSS 30a 30c -34b 25i"},{"id":"eastern-fox-squirrel","name":"Eastern Fox Squirrel","scientific":"Sciurus niger","wiki":"Fox_squirrel","group":"mammal","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","idTips":"A large squirrel with orange-brown to rusty fur, an orange belly and a bushy, orange-tinged tail.","habitat":"Open woods, parks, pecan groves and neighborhoods with big trees.","diet":"Acorns, pecans, seeds, fruit and buds.","facts":["It is the biggest tree squirrel in North America.","It prefers more open, park-like woods than the gray squirrel.","Its bones can look pink under UV light due to a pigment disorder.","It spends more time on the ground than the gray squirrel."],"range":"ALL -23a"},{"id":"white-tailed-deer","name":"White-tailed Deer","scientific":"Odocoileus virginianus","wiki":"White-tailed_deer","group":"mammal","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","idTips":"A reddish-brown deer in summer and gray-brown in winter, with a white throat and belly and a tail that is white underneath. Bucks grow antlers each year.","habitat":"Woodland edges, fields, river bottoms and increasingly suburbs.","diet":"Leaves, twigs, acorns, fruit and grasses.","facts":["It flips up its white tail like a flag when alarmed.","Bucks shed and regrow their antlers every year.","Fawns have white spots that help hide them.","Texas has more white-tailed deer than any other state.","A fawn left alone is usually not abandoned. Mothers hide fawns and return to nurse.","Growing antlers are covered in fuzzy, blood-rich skin called velvet, which bucks rub off in fall.","It can run about 30 miles per hour and clear fences about 8 feet high."],"noPhotoId":true,"factRefs":{"4":[{"label":"Wikipedia: White-tailed deer","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White-tailed_deer"}],"5":[{"label":"Wikipedia: White-tailed deer","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White-tailed_deer"}],"6":[{"label":"Wikipedia: White-tailed deer","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White-tailed_deer"}]},"range":"ALL -24f -23a"},{"id":"raccoon","name":"Raccoon","scientific":"Procyon lotor","wiki":"Raccoon","group":"mammal","origin":"native","danger":"mild","dangerNote":"Can carry rabies and raccoon roundworm. Never feed or handle one.","idTips":"A gray, stocky mammal with a black \"mask\" over the eyes and a bushy tail ringed in black.","habitat":"Woods, {bayou}s, marshes and neighborhoods; often near water.","diet":"Crayfish, frogs, insects, eggs, fruit, nuts and garbage.","facts":["Its sensitive front paws can feel food underwater.","It is famous for raiding trash cans and pet food.","It can carry rabies and roundworm, so never handle one.","It is mostly active at night.","Its famous food 'washing' is thought to sharpen its sense of touch, not to clean the food.","About two-thirds of the sensory area of its brain is devoted to touch.","In lab tests it remembered how to solve puzzles for at least three years."],"noPhotoId":true,"factRefs":{"4":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Raccoon","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raccoon"}],"5":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Raccoon","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raccoon"}],"6":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Raccoon","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raccoon"}]},"range":"ALL -23a"},{"id":"swamp-rabbit","name":"Swamp Rabbit","scientific":"Sylvilagus aquaticus","wiki":"Swamp_rabbit","group":"mammal","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","idTips":"A large, dark brown cottontail-type rabbit with a short tail that is white underneath. Bigger and darker than the Eastern Cottontail.","habitat":"Bottomland forests, swamps and marsh edges.","diet":"Grasses, sedges, cane and other plants.","facts":["It is a strong swimmer and dives to escape predators.","It is the largest cottontail rabbit.","It marks its territory on logs and stumps with droppings.","It lives in wet bottomlands rather than open lawns."],"range":"EAST"},{"id":"feral-hog","name":"Feral Hog","scientific":"Sus scrofa","wiki":"Feral_pig","group":"mammal","origin":"invasive","danger":"dangerous","dangerNote":"Can be DANGEROUS, especially sows with piglets and cornered boars. Give them space.","idTips":"A pig gone wild: coarse black, brown or spotted hair, a long snout and, in boars, sharp tusks. Often in groups.","habitat":"River bottoms, forests, marshes, fields and even golf courses and yards.","diet":"Roots, acorns, crops, grubs, eggs, small animals and carrion.","invasiveNote":"Destroys crops and wetlands, competes with native wildlife and eats ground-nesting birds’ eggs.","facts":["Texas has more feral hogs than any other state, millions of them.","Their rooting tears up lawns, crops and wetlands.","They breed so fast that populations can double in a few years.","They are a mix of escaped domestic pigs and Eurasian wild boar.","They barely sweat, so they wallow in mud to keep cool.","Their upper and lower tusks grind against each other, which keeps them razor sharp.","A sow can raise two litters a year."],"noPhotoId":true,"factRefs":{"4":[{"label":"Texas A&M AgriLife: Feral Hog Ecology","url":"https://feralhogs.tamu.edu/feral-hog-ecology/"}],"5":[{"label":"TPWD: The Feral Hog in Texas","url":"https://tpwd.texas.gov/publications/pwdpubs/media/pwd_bk_w7000_0195.pdf"}],"6":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Feral pig","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Feral_pig"}]},"range":"ALL -24f -23a"},{"id":"american-beaver","name":"American Beaver","scientific":"Castor canadensis","wiki":"North_American_beaver","group":"mammal","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","idTips":"A large brown rodent with a broad, flat, scaly tail and big orange front teeth.","habitat":"Rivers, {bayou}s and lakes with trees on the banks.","diet":"Bark, twigs and leaves of willows and other trees, plus water plants.","facts":["Texas beavers on big rivers often live in bank dens instead of building lodges.","Gnawed, pencil-point stumps are the best sign it is around.","It slaps its tail on the water as an alarm.","Its teeth are orange because of iron in the enamel."],"range":"ALL -24b -23a"},{"id":"coyote","name":"Coyote","scientific":"Canis latrans","wiki":"Coyote","group":"mammal","origin":"native","danger":"mild","dangerNote":"Usually shy. Don’t feed coyotes, and keep small pets indoors at night.","idTips":"A dog-like canine, gray-brown to tan, with a narrow snout, large pointed ears and a bushy tail held low.","habitat":"Prairies, fields, edges and increasingly suburbs and city parks.","diet":"Rabbits, rodents, insects, fruit and carrion.","facts":["It has adapted to living in cities, including {place}.","Its yips and howls are often heard at dusk.","It runs with its tail held low, unlike most dogs.","It helps control rodent and rabbit populations.","Over the last century it spread from the western plains to nearly all of North America.","It can run about 40 miles per hour.","It sometimes hunts alongside badgers: the badger digs, the coyote chases, and both catch more ground squirrels."],"noPhotoId":true,"factRefs":{"4":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Coyote","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coyote"}],"5":[{"label":"NPS Big Bend: Coyotes","url":"https://www.nps.gov/bibe/learn/nature/coyote.htm"},{"label":"TPWD Young Naturalist: Animal Speeds","url":"https://tpwd.texas.gov/publications/nonpwdpubs/young_naturalist/animals/animal_speeds/"}],"6":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Coyote","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coyote"}]},"range":"ALL -23a"},{"id":"bottlenose-dolphin","name":"Common Bottlenose Dolphin","scientific":"Tursiops truncatus","wiki":"Common_bottlenose_dolphin","group":"mammal","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","idTips":"A gray dolphin with a short, thick beak and a curved dorsal fin, often seen in small groups.","habitat":"Galveston Bay, the Houston Ship Channel, passes and the Gulf.","diet":"Fish, shrimp and squid.","facts":["It is often seen from the Galveston–Bolivar ferry.","Each dolphin has a signature whistle, like a name.","Groups work together to herd fish.","It breathes through a blowhole on top of its head.","It sleeps with one half of its brain at a time, so it can keep surfacing to breathe.","It finds fish in murky water by clicking and listening for the echoes.","It can live more than 40 years."],"range":"COAST","noPhotoId":true,"factRefs":{"4":[{"label":"Branstetter et al. 2012, PLOS One (unihemispheric sleep)","url":"https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0047478"}],"5":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Common bottlenose dolphin","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_bottlenose_dolphin"}],"6":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Common bottlenose dolphin","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_bottlenose_dolphin"}]}},{"id":"mexican-free-tailed-bat","name":"Mexican Free-tailed Bat","scientific":"Tadarida brasiliensis","wiki":"Mexican_free-tailed_bat","group":"mammal","origin":"native","danger":"mild","dangerNote":"Never handle a bat; a small number carry rabies.","idTips":"A small dark brown bat whose tail sticks out well past the wing membrane. Usually seen as streams of bats at dusk.","habitat":"Bridges, buildings and attics; the Waugh Drive bridge in {place} hosts a large colony.","diet":"Moths and other night-flying insects.","facts":["It is the official flying mammal of Texas.","{place}’s Waugh Drive bridge colony emerges at dusk by the hundreds of thousands.","It can fly as fast as 100 miles per hour.","A colony eats tons of insects each night, including crop pests.","Bracken Cave near San Antonio holds the world's largest bat colony, millions strong every summer.","Mothers find their own pup among millions in a cave by its call and scent.","It hunts migrating moths as high as about 10,000 feet."],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Mexican free-tailed bat","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mexican_free-tailed_bat"}],"4":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Mexican free-tailed bat","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mexican_free-tailed_bat"}],"5":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Mexican free-tailed bat","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mexican_free-tailed_bat"}],"6":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Mexican free-tailed bat","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mexican_free-tailed_bat"}]},"noPhotoId":true},{"id":"river-cooter","name":"River Cooter","scientific":"Pseudemys concinna","wiki":"River_cooter","group":"turtle","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","idTips":"A big, flat-shelled basking turtle with a dark olive shell marked with pale C-shaped swirls, yellow stripes on the head and a plain yellow belly. No red stripe behind the eye, unlike the Red-eared Slider.","habitat":"Rivers, {bayou}s, lakes and large ponds; basks on logs.","diet":"Mostly water plants and algae, plus some snails and insects.","facts":["It often basks alongside Red-eared Sliders, but has no red ear stripe.","Adults are mostly vegetarian.","The C-shaped mark on the second shell plate is a good ID clue.","Females travel overland in spring to lay eggs in sandy soil."],"range":"EAST CENTRAL -27h"},{"id":"spiny-softshell","name":"Spiny Softshell","scientific":"Apalone spinifera","wiki":"Spiny_softshell_turtle","group":"turtle","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","idTips":"A flat, pancake-shaped turtle with a leathery, flexible olive-to-tan shell instead of hard plates, a long, pointed snorkel nose and pale, black-edged lines along the side of the head. Males have small cone-shaped spines along the front edge of the shell.","habitat":"Rivers, {bayou}s, lakes and ponds, especially with sandy bottoms; often buried in sand in shallow water.","diet":"Crayfish, aquatic insects, fish, mussels and some plant material.","facts":["Its shell is leathery and flexible, without the hard plates most turtles have.","Its genus name, Apalone, comes from a Greek word meaning soft.","It often buries itself in sand and waits to ambush prey.","Ridges inside its nose make its nostrils C-shaped."],"range":"EAST CENTRAL 25i 26c","factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Spiny softshell turtle","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spiny_softshell_turtle"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Spiny softshell turtle","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spiny_softshell_turtle"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Spiny softshell turtle","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spiny_softshell_turtle"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Spiny softshell turtle","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spiny_softshell_turtle"}]}},{"id":"common-snapping-turtle","name":"Common Snapping Turtle","scientific":"Chelydra serpentina","wiki":"Common_snapping_turtle","group":"turtle","origin":"native","danger":"dangerous","dangerNote":"Bites hard and fast when cornered on land. Give it plenty of room and never pick it up by the tail. In the water it usually flees.","idTips":"A large, dark turtle with a rugged, ridged shell, a big head with powerful, beak-like jaws and a long, flexible neck. Unlike sliders and cooters, it is rarely seen basking on logs.","habitat":"Ponds, {bayou}s, streams and marshes, even brackish water; often lies buried in mud in the shallows.","diet":"Almost anything it can swallow: fish, crayfish, frogs, snakes, small turtles and carrion, plus a surprising amount of water plants.","facts":["Its species name, serpentina, means snake-like, for its long, flexible neck.","It can lie buried in mud and stretch its neck up to breathe, using nostrils at the very tip of its snout like a snorkel.","Some may live more than 100 years.","On land it is combative, but in the water it usually flees and hides."],"range":"EAST CENTRAL 25i 26c","factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Common snapping turtle","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_snapping_turtle"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Common snapping turtle","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_snapping_turtle"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Common snapping turtle","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_snapping_turtle"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Common snapping turtle","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_snapping_turtle"}]}},{"id":"eastern-mud-turtle","name":"Eastern Mud Turtle","scientific":"Kinosternon subrubrum","wiki":"Eastern_mud_turtle","group":"turtle","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","idTips":"A small turtle, only 3 to 4 inches long, with a smooth, plain, domed shell from yellowish to black, no ridge down the middle and a yellowish-gray chin mottled with brown. Its lower shell has two hinges.","habitat":"Vegetated ponds, ditches, swamps and slow streams; also near brackish marshes. Often moves over land between wetlands.","diet":"Insects, crayfish, snails, tadpoles, carrion and water plants.","facts":["Its lower shell has two hinges.","Its species name, subrubrum, means under red, for the red-orange belly of hatchlings.","It rarely basks.","Females nest during rainstorms, then wait for another rain to head back."],"range":"EAST CENTRAL -27h","factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Eastern mud turtle","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_mud_turtle"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Eastern mud turtle","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_mud_turtle"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Eastern mud turtle","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_mud_turtle"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Eastern mud turtle","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_mud_turtle"}]}},{"id":"plain-bellied-watersnake","name":"Plain-bellied Watersnake","scientific":"Nerodia erythrogaster","wiki":"Plain-bellied_water_snake","group":"snake","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS (non-venomous), but often confused with the venomous Cottonmouth. Round pupils; swims with only its head above water.","idTips":"A heavy-bodied, dark gray-brown watersnake with a plain, unmarked yellow to orange-red belly and round pupils. Often mistaken for a cottonmouth.","habitat":"Bayous, ponds, swamps and wet woods; often far from water after rain.","diet":"Frogs, toads, tadpoles and fish.","facts":["Its plain orange or yellow belly gives it its name.","It is harmless but often killed because people mistake it for a cottonmouth.","It flattens its head and bites if grabbed, but has no venom.","It eats more frogs than fish."],"range":"EAST CENTRAL STX 25i 26c"},{"id":"southern-watersnake","name":"Southern Watersnake (Banded Watersnake)","scientific":"Nerodia fasciata","wiki":"Southern_water_snake","group":"snake","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS (non-venomous). Look for round pupils and bands that wrap around the body.","idTips":"A thick watersnake with bold dark crossbands on a lighter brown, red or yellowish body, a dark stripe from eye to jaw, and round pupils. Old snakes can look almost solid dark.","habitat":"Marshes, {bayou}s, ditches, ponds and swamps.","diet":"Fish, frogs and crayfish.","facts":["Its crossbands run all the way around the body, unlike the Diamondback Water Snake’s net pattern.","It is harmless, but often mistaken for a cottonmouth.","It bears live young, sometimes dozens at once.","It often basks on branches over the water."],"range":"EAST STX"},{"id":"timber-rattlesnake","name":"Timber Rattlesnake (Canebrake)","scientific":"Crotalus horridus","wiki":"Timber_rattlesnake","group":"snake","origin":"native","danger":"venomous","dangerNote":"VENOMOUS. A large pit viper with dark, jagged V-shaped crossbands, a rusty stripe down the back and a solid black tail ending in rattles. Its venom is extremely potent. It usually stays still or escapes rather than striking, so give it plenty of room and get emergency care for any bite.","idTips":"A heavy-bodied rattlesnake, usually 3 to 5 feet long, gray to yellowish-brown with 20 to 29 dark, jagged V- or M-shaped crossbands, often a rust-colored stripe down the spine, and a velvety black tail tipped with rattles. Vertical pupils and a heat-sensing pit. Some are almost solid black.","habitat":"Bottomland forests, swamps, river and stream edges and upland woods in the eastern third of Texas, including the Piney Woods and Big Thicket.","diet":"Mostly small mammals (mice, rats, squirrels and rabbits), plus some birds, frogs and other snakes. It ambushes prey beside logs.","hosts":[],"facts":["In the South it is called the canebrake rattlesnake.","Its tail is solid black, which sets it apart from its banded body.","It often stays silent and still, relying on camouflage, before rattling or striking.","Females give birth to live young, usually only once every two to three years."],"refs":[{"label":"Texas Parks & Wildlife: State-listed amphibians and reptiles","url":"https://tpwd.texas.gov/huntwild/wild/wildlife_diversity/nongame/listed-species/amphibians-reptiles.phtml"},{"label":"Wikipedia: Timber rattlesnake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timber_rattlesnake"},{"label":"Texas Parks & Wildlife: Timber Rattlesnake","url":"https://tpwd.texas.gov/huntwild/wild/species/timberrattlesnake/"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Timber rattlesnake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timber_rattlesnake"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Timber rattlesnake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timber_rattlesnake"}],"2":[{"label":"Texas Parks & Wildlife: Timber Rattlesnake","url":"https://tpwd.texas.gov/huntwild/wild/species/timberrattlesnake/"}],"3":[{"label":"Texas Parks & Wildlife: Timber Rattlesnake","url":"https://tpwd.texas.gov/huntwild/wild/species/timberrattlesnake/"}]},"range":"ALL -34b -31c -27h -25i -24f -24b -26c -23a","atRisk":{"status":"State threatened in Texas","threats":"Much of the bottomland hardwood forest it lives in has been cleared or broken up for timber, farms and development. Many are also killed on sight by people or hit on roads, and because females have young only every two to three years, losses are slow to replace.","quiz":[{"q":"What has destroyed much of the Timber Rattlesnake's habitat in Texas?","a":"Bottomland and riverside forests cleared for timber, farms and towns","wrong":["Prairie restoration turning forest into grassland","Feral cats taking over the river bottoms","Sea-level rise flooding the Piney Woods"],"why":"It depends on big, connected bottomland hardwood forests. Texas Parks & Wildlife notes that destroying or altering the places it hunts, hibernates and lives is the fastest way to wipe out its populations, and large areas of East Texas forest have been logged, farmed or developed."},{"q":"Why are Timber Rattlesnake populations so slow to recover from losses?","a":"Females have young only every two to three years","wrong":["Its eggs are eaten by fire ants before they hatch","It only mates once in its whole life","Its young can't survive away from their mother"],"why":"It gives birth to live young, and females usually breed only every two to three years. When snakes are killed on roads or by people, it takes a long time to replace them."}]}},{"id":"pygmy-rattlesnake","name":"Western Pygmy Rattlesnake","scientific":"Sistrurus miliarius","wiki":"Sistrurus_miliarius","range":"PINEY POST","group":"snake","origin":"native","danger":"venomous","dangerNote":"VENOMOUS. Small enough to mistake for a harmless snake, with a tiny rattle that sounds like a buzzing insect. Bites are painful and need emergency care, though rarely deadly. Watch your hands and feet in leaf litter and pine straw.","idTips":"A small, stout rattlesnake, usually 1 to 2 feet long, gray with a row of dark, rounded blotches down the back, often an orange-red stripe between them, and smaller spots on the sides. The rattle is tiny. Vertical pupils and a heat-sensing pit.","habitat":"Pine and oak woods, sandy uplands, wet flatwoods and the edges of swamps and lakes in East Texas.","diet":"Mostly lizards, frogs and small mammals, plus centipedes and other snakes; young ones lure prey with a yellow tail tip.","facts":["Its rattle is so small that its buzz is often mistaken for an insect.","Its thin, tiny rattle can be heard only a few feet away.","Its young wiggle a yellowish tail tip to lure frogs and lizards within reach.","Most of its bites happen when people reach into leaf litter or step on it unseen."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Sistrurus miliarius","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sistrurus_miliarius"},{"label":"Texas Parks & Wildlife: Western Pygmy Rattlesnake","url":"https://tpwd.texas.gov/huntwild/wild/species/pygrat/"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Sistrurus miliarius","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sistrurus_miliarius"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Sistrurus miliarius","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sistrurus_miliarius"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Sistrurus miliarius","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sistrurus_miliarius"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Sistrurus miliarius","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sistrurus_miliarius"}]}},{"id":"eastern-hognose","name":"Eastern Hognose Snake","scientific":"Heterodon platirhinos","wiki":"Eastern_hognose_snake","group":"snake","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS to people. It hisses, flattens its neck like a cobra and may play dead, so it's often mistaken for a rattlesnake or copperhead and killed. Round pupils and an upturned snout give it away.","idTips":"A thick-bodied snake, 2 to 3 feet long, with a sharply upturned, shovel-like snout. Usually yellowish, brown or gray with dark blotches, but some are solid black or olive. Round pupils; no rattle and no heat pit.","habitat":"Sandy fields, open woods, prairies and yards with loose soil across East and Central Texas.","diet":"Mostly toads, which it digs out with its snout; also frogs and salamanders.","facts":["When threatened it flattens its neck, hisses loudly and fakes strikes with its mouth closed.","If bluffing fails it rolls over, opens its mouth and plays dead, and flips back over if turned right side up.","Enlarged rear teeth help it puncture toads that puff up with air.","Its upturned snout works like a shovel for digging toads out of sand."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Eastern hognose snake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_hognose_snake"},{"label":"Texas Parks & Wildlife: Eastern Hognose Snake","url":"https://tpwd.texas.gov/huntwild/wild/species/easthog/"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Eastern hognose snake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_hognose_snake"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Eastern hognose snake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_hognose_snake"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Eastern hognose snake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_hognose_snake"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Eastern hognose snake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_hognose_snake"}]},"range":"ALL -24f -24b -23a"},{"id":"speckled-kingsnake","name":"Speckled Kingsnake","scientific":"Lampropeltis holbrooki","wiki":"Speckled_kingsnake","group":"snake","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS to people, and it eats venomous snakes. Round pupils, a smooth glossy body and no heat pit or rattle.","idTips":"A glossy black snake, 3 to 4 feet long, with a small yellow or white speck in the center of nearly every scale, giving it a 'salt-and-pepper' look. Round pupils and a small head barely wider than its neck.","habitat":"Bottomland woods, marshes, prairies, ditches and wet edges, often hiding under boards and logs.","diet":"Rodents, birds and eggs, lizards and other snakes, including copperheads and cottonmouths.","facts":["It is largely immune to pit viper venom and eats copperheads and cottonmouths.","It kills its prey by constriction.","Each dark scale has a pale center, which creates its 'salt-and-pepper' pattern.","It is also called the 'salt-and-pepper snake.'"],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Speckled kingsnake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speckled_kingsnake"},{"label":"Texas Parks & Wildlife: Speckled Kingsnake","url":"https://tpwd.texas.gov/huntwild/wild/species/speckking/"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Speckled kingsnake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speckled_kingsnake"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Speckled kingsnake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speckled_kingsnake"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Speckled kingsnake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speckled_kingsnake"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Speckled kingsnake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Speckled_kingsnake"}]},"range":"ALL -31c -24f -24b -23a"},{"id":"little-brown-skink","name":"Little Brown Skink","scientific":"Scincella lateralis","wiki":"Scincella_lateralis","group":"lizard","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS native lizard.","idTips":"A tiny, shiny, bronze-brown lizard, 3 to 5 inches long, with a dark stripe along each side, very short legs and a long tail. It wriggles through leaf litter almost like a snake.","habitat":"Leaf litter, mulch, garden beds and woodland floors across East Texas.","diet":"Tiny insects, spiders and other small invertebrates.","hosts":[],"facts":["Its legs are so small it often wriggles through leaves like a snake.","It has a clear 'window' in its lower eyelid, so it can see with its eyes closed.","It can drop its tail to escape a predator, then grow a new one.","It is one of the smallest reptiles in North America."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Scincella lateralis","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scincella_lateralis"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Scincella lateralis","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scincella_lateralis"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Scincella lateralis","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scincella_lateralis"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Scincella lateralis","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scincella_lateralis"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Scincella lateralis","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scincella_lateralis"}]},"range":"ALL -25i -24f -24b -23a"},{"id":"five-lined-skink","name":"Common Five-lined Skink","scientific":"Plestiodon fasciatus","wiki":"Plestiodon_fasciatus","group":"lizard","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS native lizard. The bright blue tail is not venomous.","idTips":"A sleek, shiny lizard, 5 to 8 inches long. Young ones are black with five cream stripes and a bright blue tail; adults fade to brown, and breeding males get an orange-red head.","habitat":"Woods with logs, stumps and leaf litter, woodpiles and old buildings.","diet":"Insects, spiders, snails and other small invertebrates.","hosts":[],"facts":["Its young have a bright blue tail that draws a predator's attack away from the body.","Breeding males develop an orange-red head.","Females guard their eggs until they hatch.","The old belief that a blue tail is venomous is a myth."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Common five-lined skink","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plestiodon_fasciatus"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Common five-lined skink","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plestiodon_fasciatus"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Common five-lined skink","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plestiodon_fasciatus"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Common five-lined skink","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plestiodon_fasciatus"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Common five-lined skink","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plestiodon_fasciatus"}]},"range":"ALL -31c -27h -25i -24f -24b -26c -23a"},{"id":"houston-toad","name":"Houston Toad","scientific":"Anaxyrus houstonensis","wiki":"Houston_toad","range":"33b 33e","group":"amphibian","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS. Federally endangered: look, listen and leave it be.","idTips":"A small toad, 2 to 3.5 inches long, mottled brown, gray or purplish with dark spots, thick ridges on its head and a pale stripe down the back. Males call with a long, high trill.","habitat":"Deep sandy soils under pine and oak woods, especially the Lost Pines of Bastrop, breeding in rain-filled pools.","diet":"Ants, beetles and other small insects.","hosts":[],"facts":["It was the first amphibian listed as endangered in the United States, in 1970.","It burrows into deep, loose sand to escape heat and cold.","Its biggest remaining population lives in the Lost Pines near Bastrop.","Wildfires in 2011 burned much of its best remaining habitat."],"refs":[{"label":"U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service: Houston toad recovery plan (2022)","url":"https://ecos.fws.gov/docs/recovery_plan/Houston%20Toad%20Final%20Revised%20Recovery%20Plan_May%202022_508_RD%20signed.pdf"},{"label":"Wikipedia: Houston toad","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Houston_toad"},{"label":"U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service: Houston toad","url":"https://www.fws.gov/species/houston-toad-anaxyrus-houstonensis"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Houston toad","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Houston_toad"},{"label":"U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service: Houston toad","url":"https://www.fws.gov/species/houston-toad-anaxyrus-houstonensis"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Houston toad","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Houston_toad"},{"label":"U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service: Houston toad","url":"https://www.fws.gov/species/houston-toad-anaxyrus-houstonensis"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Houston toad","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Houston_toad"},{"label":"U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service: Houston toad","url":"https://www.fws.gov/species/houston-toad-anaxyrus-houstonensis"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Houston toad","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Houston_toad"},{"label":"U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service: Houston toad","url":"https://www.fws.gov/species/houston-toad-anaxyrus-houstonensis"}]},"atRisk":{"status":"Federally endangered (since 1970)","threats":"Most of the deep-sand pine and oak woodland it needs has been cleared for homes, roads and improved pasture. Clearing also lets Gulf Coast and Woodhouse's toads move in and interbreed with it, invasive fire ants prey on newly emerged toadlets, and droughts and the 2011 Bastrop fire hit the last strongholds.","quiz":[{"q":"What is the main reason this endangered toad has vanished from most of its old range?","a":"Its sandy woods and breeding pools were cleared for cities, roads and pasture","wrong":["Alligators moved inland and ate most of the adults","Collectors took nearly all of them for the pet trade","Cold winters froze them in their burrows"],"why":"Habitat loss is the main threat. It was once found around the city it's named for, but urban growth and land clearing destroyed its sandy woodland, and it now survives mainly in the Lost Pines and a few other sandy counties."},{"q":"When its woodland is cleared, how do other toads add to its decline?","a":"Common toads move into the open ground and interbreed with it","wrong":["Other toads dig up and eat its eggs","Other toads use up all the earthworms it eats","Other toads carry a fungus only it catches"],"why":"Gulf Coast and Woodhouse's toads favor open, disturbed land. Where woods are cleared they move in, and hybrids with them dilute the endangered toad's population."}]}},{"id":"western-diamondback","name":"Western Diamondback Rattlesnake","scientific":"Crotalus atrox","wiki":"Western_diamondback_rattlesnake","range":"BLACK POST CROSS EDW STX ROLL HIGH TRANS SCP RGV LAGUNA 34d -33e","group":"snake","origin":"native","danger":"venomous","dangerNote":"VENOMOUS. Texas's most common rattlesnake and the cause of most serious snakebites in the state. It often rattles and stands its ground. Back away slowly and get emergency care for any bite.","idTips":"A heavy rattlesnake, usually 3 to 5 feet long, gray to tan with dark, light-edged diamond blotches down the back and a 'coon tail' of bold black and white rings just before the rattle. Vertical pupils and a heat-sensing pit.","habitat":"Brushy pastures, rocky hillsides, prairie edges and creek bottoms across Central, South and West Texas.","diet":"Rodents, rabbits, ground squirrels and birds.","hosts":[],"facts":["Its tail has bold black-and-white bands just before the rattle, a 'coon tail.'","It causes more serious snakebites than any other snake in Texas.","It usually coils, rattles and holds its ground when threatened.","Females give birth to live young."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Western diamondback rattlesnake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_diamondback_rattlesnake"},{"label":"Texas Parks & Wildlife: Western Diamondback Rattlesnake","url":"https://tpwd.texas.gov/huntwild/wild/species/wdb/"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Western diamondback rattlesnake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_diamondback_rattlesnake"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Western diamondback rattlesnake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_diamondback_rattlesnake"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Western diamondback rattlesnake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_diamondback_rattlesnake"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Western diamondback rattlesnake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_diamondback_rattlesnake"}]}},{"id":"texas-spiny-lizard","name":"Texas Spiny Lizard","scientific":"Sceloporus olivaceus","wiki":"Texas_spiny_lizard","range":"BLACK POST CROSS EDW STX SCP RGV ROLL -33e 25i 26c","group":"lizard","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS native lizard.","idTips":"A large, rough-scaled gray or brown lizard, up to about 11 inches long, with dark wavy bands across the back and pointed, keeled scales. It clings to tree trunks and fences and hides on the far side when approached.","habitat":"Trees, fence posts, woodpiles and walls in towns, parks and mesquite or oak woods.","diet":"Insects and spiders, plus other small invertebrates.","hosts":[],"facts":["It escapes by scooting around to the opposite side of a tree trunk.","Its spiny, keeled scales feel rough like sandpaper.","It is one of the most common lizards in Central Texas cities.","Its gray, banded pattern blends into tree bark."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Texas spiny lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_spiny_lizard"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Texas spiny lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_spiny_lizard"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Texas spiny lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_spiny_lizard"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Texas spiny lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_spiny_lizard"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Texas spiny lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_spiny_lizard"}]}},{"id":"rock-squirrel","name":"Rock Squirrel","scientific":"Otospermophilus variegatus","wiki":"Rock_squirrel","range":"EDW TRANS CROSS 32a -29d 27h 27j","group":"mammal","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS, but don't feed or handle wild squirrels.","idTips":"A large, gray-and-brown ground squirrel with a mottled back, a fairly bushy tail and a pale eye ring. It lives in burrows among rocks and often perches on boulders and walls.","habitat":"Rocky hillsides, limestone ledges, canyons and stone walls.","diet":"Seeds, nuts, fruit, flowers and some insects.","hosts":[],"facts":["It is one of the largest ground squirrels in North America.","It often sits upright on a rock or wall to watch for danger.","It climbs trees well, unlike most ground squirrels.","It stores seeds and nuts in its burrow."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Rock Squirrel","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_squirrel"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Rock Squirrel","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_squirrel"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Rock Squirrel","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_squirrel"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Rock Squirrel","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_squirrel"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Rock Squirrel","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rock_squirrel"}]}},{"id":"ringtail","name":"Ringtail","scientific":"Bassariscus astutus","wiki":"Ringtail","range":"EDW TRANS CROSS STX ROLL HIGH 32a -24f","group":"mammal","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","noPhotoId":true,"dangerNote":"HARMLESS and shy; active at night.","idTips":"A slender, cat-sized relative of the raccoon with huge dark eyes ringed in pale fur, big ears, and a long, bushy tail banded black and white.","habitat":"Rocky canyons, cliffs, caves and wooded creeks.","diet":"Rodents, birds, insects, fruit and berries.","hosts":[],"facts":["It can rotate its hind feet to climb down rocks and trees headfirst.","Miners once kept it to catch mice, earning it the name 'miner's cat.'","Its tail is about as long as its body."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Ringtail","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ringtail"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Ringtail","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ringtail"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Ringtail","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ringtail"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Ringtail","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ringtail"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Ringtail","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ringtail"}]}},{"id":"spotted-whiptail","name":"Texas Spotted Whiptail","scientific":"Aspidoscelis gularis","wiki":"Texas_spotted_whiptail","range":"EDW STX CROSS ROLL TRANS BLACK SCP RGV 25i -24f 26c -23a","group":"lizard","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS native lizard.","idTips":"A slim, fast lizard with a very long tail, pale stripes down a dark back and rows of pale spots between them. Breeding males have a reddish-orange throat and blue patches on the belly.","habitat":"Open, sunny ground with sparse grass: rocky hillsides, trails, roadsides and yards.","diet":"Insects, spiders and other small invertebrates dug from soil and leaf litter.","hosts":[],"facts":["It moves in quick, jerky dashes, flicking its tongue as it hunts.","Its tail can be more than twice as long as its body.","It is most active in the heat of the day.","Breeding males develop a reddish throat."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Texas Spotted Whiptail","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_spotted_whiptail"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Texas Spotted Whiptail","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_spotted_whiptail"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Texas Spotted Whiptail","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_spotted_whiptail"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Texas Spotted Whiptail","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_spotted_whiptail"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Texas Spotted Whiptail","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_spotted_whiptail"}]}},{"id":"woodhouses-toad","name":"Woodhouse's Toad","scientific":"Anaxyrus woodhousii","wiki":"Woodhouse's_toad","range":"CROSS BLACK ROLL HIGH EDW TRANS 33a 33b -24b -23a","group":"amphibian","origin":"native","danger":"mild","dangerNote":"MILD. Like all toads it oozes a bitter toxin from the bumps behind its eyes; wash your hands after handling and keep dogs from mouthing it.","idTips":"A medium-to-large toad, gray, brown or olive with dark spots, warty skin, a pale stripe down the middle of the back and long, kidney-shaped glands behind the eyes. Its call is a nasal 'waaaah' like a bleating sheep.","habitat":"Prairies, yards, river bottoms and town parks; breeds in ponds, ditches and puddles after rain.","diet":"Beetles, ants and other insects, often caught under porch lights.","hosts":[],"facts":["Its call sounds like a nasal, bleating 'waaaah.'","It often hunts insects under porch and street lights at night.","A pale stripe usually runs down the middle of its back.","It breeds in temporary pools after spring rains."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Woodhouse's toad","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woodhouse%27s_toad"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Woodhouse's toad","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woodhouse%27s_toad"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Woodhouse's toad","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woodhouse%27s_toad"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Woodhouse's toad","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woodhouse%27s_toad"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Woodhouse's toad","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Woodhouse%27s_toad"}]}},{"id":"texas-tortoise","name":"Texas Tortoise","scientific":"Gopherus berlandieri","wiki":"Texas_tortoise","range":"STX RGV 34d SCP","group":"turtle","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS. State-listed as threatened in Texas: it is illegal to collect or keep one. Leave it where you find it.","idTips":"A small land tortoise, 6 to 9 inches long, with a high, domed, yellowish-orange to brown shell of blocky plates with dark centers, and thick, elephant-like legs with no webbing.","habitat":"Thornscrub, mesquite brush and sandy flats in South Texas.","diet":"Prickly pear pads and fruit, grasses and other plants.","hosts":[],"facts":["It eats prickly pear pads, spines and all, along with the fruit.","It is protected as a threatened species in Texas.","It is the smallest of the North American tortoises.","It often shelters in shallow scrapes under shrubs instead of digging deep burrows."],"refs":[{"label":"U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service: Tamaulipan brushland of the Lower Rio Grande Valley (1988)","url":"https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/tr/pdf/ADA322826.pdf"},{"label":"Wikipedia: Texas Tortoise","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_tortoise"},{"label":"Texas Parks & Wildlife: Texas Tortoise","url":"https://tpwd.texas.gov/huntwild/wild/species/txtort/"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Texas Tortoise","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_tortoise"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Texas Tortoise","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_tortoise"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Texas Tortoise","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_tortoise"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Texas Tortoise","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_tortoise"}]},"atRisk":{"status":"State threatened in Texas","threats":"Most of the native thornscrub of South Texas and the Rio Grande Valley has been cleared for farms, non-native pasture grasses and cities. Huge numbers were also taken from the wild for the pet trade before Texas protected it in 1977, and many are hit on roads.","quiz":[{"q":"What has destroyed most of the Texas Tortoise's thornscrub home in the Rio Grande Valley?","a":"Brush cleared for farms, pasture and cities","wrong":["Hurricanes that flooded the scrub with seawater","Wild hogs uprooting the prickly pear","Beavers damming rivers and drowning the scrub"],"why":"About 95% of the Valley's native brush has been cleared since the early 1900s, mostly for farming and cities, leaving the tortoise in small, scattered patches."},{"q":"Why did Texas make it illegal to collect the Texas Tortoise?","a":"Huge numbers were being taken from the wild and sold as pets","wrong":["It was being hunted for its shell to make jewelry","Ranchers were feeding it to livestock","It was carrying a disease that spread to cattle"],"why":"Heavy collection for the pet trade, on top of habitat loss, led Texas to protect it in 1977. Tortoises grow slowly and lay few eggs, so populations recover slowly."}]}},{"id":"texas-horned-lizard","name":"Texas Horned Lizard","scientific":"Phrynosoma cornutum","wiki":"Texas_horned_lizard","range":"STX TRANS HIGH ROLL EDW CROSS 34d","group":"lizard","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS. State-listed as threatened in Texas: don't collect it. It may squirt a little blood from its eyes when grabbed.","idTips":"A flat, round-bodied lizard with a crown of sharp horns on the back of its head (two longest in the middle), fringes of spiny scales along the sides and a pale stripe down the back. Often called a 'horny toad.'","habitat":"Open, sparsely vegetated ground with loose soil and harvester ant colonies.","diet":"Mostly harvester ants.","hosts":[],"facts":["It is the official state reptile of Texas.","It can squirt blood from its eyes to deter coyotes and other predators.","Harvester ants make up most of its diet.","It has disappeared from much of East Texas, partly as fire ants replaced harvester ants."],"refs":[{"label":"Texas Parks & Wildlife: Texas Horned Lizard Watch report","url":"https://tpwd.texas.gov/publications/pwdpubs/pwd_rp_w7000_1442/conclusions/"},{"label":"Texas Parks & Wildlife: Horned lizard habitat project","url":"https://tpwd.texas.gov/publications/pwdpubs/media/pwd_lf_w7000_1405_08_14.pdf"},{"label":"Wikipedia: Texas Horned Lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_horned_lizard"},{"label":"Texas Parks & Wildlife: Texas Horned Lizard","url":"https://tpwd.texas.gov/huntwild/wild/species/thl/"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Texas Horned Lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_horned_lizard"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Texas Horned Lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_horned_lizard"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Texas Horned Lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_horned_lizard"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Texas Horned Lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_horned_lizard"}]},"atRisk":{"status":"State threatened in Texas","threats":"It has disappeared from much of East and Central Texas. Invasive red imported fire ants, and broad ant poisons used against them, wiped out the harvester ants it eats. Native grassland was also plowed into cropland, planted with dense non-native pasture grasses or paved over, and many were once collected as pets.","quiz":[{"q":"What took away the main food of the Texas Horned Lizard across much of Texas?","a":"Invasive fire ants, and ant poisons, wiped out the harvester ants it eats","wrong":["Droughts killed off the grasshoppers it eats","Bats began catching the beetles it eats at night","Lawn mowing destroyed the earthworms it eats"],"why":"Harvester ants make up most of its diet. Red imported fire ants crowd them out, and ant poisons spread for fire ants kill harvester ants too."},{"q":"What change in land use took away the open ground the Texas Horned Lizard needs?","a":"Native grassland plowed into cropland or planted with dense non-native pasture grass","wrong":["Prescribed burns that left the ground too open and bare","Bison herds trampling the bare patches it lives on","Wildflower plantings along highways"],"why":"It needs open, sparsely grassed ground with loose soil and ant colonies. Row crops, thick pasture grasses like bermudagrass and buffelgrass, and development replaced much of it."}]}},{"id":"collared-peccary","name":"Collared Peccary (Javelina)","scientific":"Pecari tajacu","wiki":"Collared_peccary","range":"STX TRANS EDW 34d RGV 27h 27j -24f 26c","group":"mammal","origin":"native","danger":"mild","noPhotoId":true,"dangerNote":"MILD. Usually shy, but a cornered herd or a mother with young may charge; keep dogs away.","idTips":"A pig-like animal, 3 feet long, with coarse, grizzled gray-black hair, a pale collar around the neck, a long snout and small tusks. It travels in herds.","habitat":"Thornscrub, desert brush and canyons.","diet":"Prickly pear, roots, seeds, mesquite beans and other plants.","hosts":[],"facts":["It is not a true pig but belongs to a separate family native to the Americas.","It eats prickly pear pads, spines and all.","Herds mark their territory with a musky scent from a gland on the back.","It lives in herds of up to about 20 animals."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Collared Peccary (Javelina)","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collared_peccary"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Collared Peccary (Javelina)","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collared_peccary"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Collared Peccary (Javelina)","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collared_peccary"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Collared Peccary (Javelina)","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collared_peccary"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Collared Peccary (Javelina)","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Collared_peccary"}]}},{"id":"broad-banded-copperhead","name":"Broad-banded Copperhead","scientific":"Agkistrodon laticinctus","wiki":"Agkistrodon_laticinctus","range":"CROSS EDW ROLL 32a 32c 31a 31b 26b 26c 24b -26c","group":"snake","origin":"native","danger":"venomous","dangerNote":"VENOMOUS. Bites are painful but rarely fatal. It freezes and relies on camouflage, so most bites happen when someone steps on or reaches near one in leaf litter or brush piles. Watch where you put your hands and feet, back away, and get emergency care for any bite.","idTips":"A stout, tan to pinkish-brown pit viper with wide, chestnut-brown crossbands that stay broad across the back instead of pinching into hourglasses. A copper-colored head, vertical pupils and a heat-sensing pit. Young ones have a yellow tail tip.","habitat":"Wooded creek bottoms, rocky hillsides, brush and leaf litter, from Central Texas into Oklahoma and Kansas.","diet":"Mice, lizards, frogs and big insects such as cicadas.","hosts":[],"facts":["It was long treated as a kind of copperhead and is now considered its own species.","Its crossbands stay wide across the back instead of narrowing to an hourglass.","Young ones wiggle a yellow tail tip to lure frogs and lizards.","It often lies still and trusts its camouflage instead of fleeing."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Agkistrodon laticinctus","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agkistrodon_laticinctus"},{"label":"Wikipedia: Copperhead","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agkistrodon_contortrix"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Agkistrodon laticinctus","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agkistrodon_laticinctus"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Agkistrodon laticinctus","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agkistrodon_laticinctus"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Agkistrodon laticinctus","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agkistrodon_laticinctus"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Agkistrodon laticinctus","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agkistrodon_laticinctus"}]}},{"id":"black-tailed-prairie-dog","name":"Black-tailed Prairie Dog","scientific":"Cynomys ludovicianus","wiki":"Black-tailed_prairie_dog","range":"ROLL HIGH TRANS 30d -24f -23a","group":"mammal","origin":"native","danger":"mild","dangerNote":"MILD. Harmless at a distance, but it can bite if handled, and its fleas can carry plague. Watch prairie dogs from outside the town and keep dogs leashed.","idTips":"A plump, tan ground squirrel about a foot long with small ears, short legs and a short, black-tipped tail. It lives in colonies ('towns') of mounded burrows on short-grass prairie and stands upright to watch for danger.","habitat":"Short-grass and mixed-grass prairie and pastures with open, level ground.","diet":"Grasses and other low plants.","hosts":[],"facts":["A prairie dog town in Texas was once reported to cover 25,000 square miles.","It does not truly hibernate and can be seen above ground in midwinter.","Its 'jump-yip' call, thrown with its front feet in the air, spreads through the town.","Its burrows shelter Burrowing Owls and many other animals."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Black-tailed prairie dog","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black-tailed_prairie_dog"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Black-tailed prairie dog","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black-tailed_prairie_dog"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Black-tailed prairie dog","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black-tailed_prairie_dog"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Black-tailed prairie dog","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black-tailed_prairie_dog"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Black-tailed prairie dog","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black-tailed_prairie_dog"}]}},{"id":"ornate-box-turtle","name":"Ornate Box Turtle","scientific":"Terrapene ornata","wiki":"Ornate_box_turtle","range":"ROLL HIGH TRANS CROSS EDW BLACK STX SCP RGV 34d -23a","group":"turtle","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS. Please leave it where you found it: box turtles live for decades in a small home area, and taking them home harms wild populations. To help one across a road, carry it the way it was heading.","idTips":"A small land turtle with a high, domed, dark brown shell marked with yellow lines radiating out from the center of each plate. A hinged lower shell lets it close up completely.","habitat":"Open prairie, pastures and sandy grassland.","diet":"Mostly insects such as beetles and grasshoppers, plus berries, cactus fruit and carrion.","hosts":[],"facts":["It is one of only two land turtles native to the Great Plains.","Its hinged lower shell lets it shut itself in completely.","Yellow lines fan out across each plate of its shell."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Ornate box turtle","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ornate_box_turtle"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Ornate box turtle","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ornate_box_turtle"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Ornate box turtle","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ornate_box_turtle"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Ornate box turtle","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ornate_box_turtle"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Ornate box turtle","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ornate_box_turtle"}]}},{"id":"black-tailed-jackrabbit","name":"Black-tailed Jackrabbit","scientific":"Lepus californicus","wiki":"Black-tailed_jackrabbit","range":"CENTRAL STX RGV HIGH TRANS BLACK SCP LAGUNA","group":"mammal","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS. Shy and fast; it flees long before you get close.","idTips":"A big, lanky hare, about 2 feet long, grizzled gray-brown with enormous black-tipped ears, long hind legs and a black stripe on top of the tail.","habitat":"Open grassland, pastures and brush.","diet":"Grasses and wildflowers in spring and summer; shrubs such as mesquite in fall and winter.","hosts":[],"facts":["It is a hare, not a rabbit: its young are born furred with their eyes open.","Its huge ears help it shed heat.","It does not migrate or hibernate and stays in the same small home area all year.","Coyotes, bobcats, hawks and eagles all hunt it."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Black-tailed jackrabbit","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black-tailed_jackrabbit"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Black-tailed jackrabbit","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black-tailed_jackrabbit"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Black-tailed jackrabbit","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black-tailed_jackrabbit"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Black-tailed jackrabbit","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black-tailed_jackrabbit"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Black-tailed jackrabbit","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black-tailed_jackrabbit"}]}},{"id":"pronghorn","name":"Pronghorn","scientific":"Antilocapra americana","wiki":"Pronghorn","range":"HIGH TRANS 27h -24f","group":"mammal","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS. Shy and fast; watch from a distance and give does with fawns space in spring.","idTips":"A deer-sized animal, tan above and white below, with two white bands across the throat, a big white rump patch and short black horns; males' horns are taller with a forward-pointing prong.","habitat":"Open shortgrass prairie, plains and desert grassland.","diet":"Wildflowers, shrubs and some grass.","hosts":[],"facts":["It is the fastest land animal in the Americas, reaching about 55 mph.","It is not a true antelope; its closest living relatives are giraffes and okapis.","It sheds the outer sheath of its horns every year.","It flares its white rump hairs as a warning signal to the herd."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Pronghorn","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pronghorn"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Pronghorn","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pronghorn"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Pronghorn","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pronghorn"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Pronghorn","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pronghorn"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Pronghorn","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pronghorn"}]}},{"id":"prairie-rattlesnake","name":"Prairie Rattlesnake","scientific":"Crotalus viridis","wiki":"Prairie_rattlesnake","range":"HIGH TRANS 27h","group":"snake","origin":"native","danger":"venomous","dangerNote":"VENOMOUS. A pit viper of the plains; it often hides in prairie dog burrows and grass. Watch where you step and reach, back away slowly from a rattle, and get emergency care for any bite.","idTips":"A medium rattlesnake, 3 to 4 feet, greenish-gray to tan with rounded brown blotches down the back that narrow into bands near the tail, and thin pale lines from the eye to the jaw. Its tail rings are not bold black and white like a western diamondback's.","habitat":"Shortgrass prairie, prairie dog towns, rocky breaks and canyon edges.","diet":"Mice, ground squirrels, young prairie dogs and other small mammals.","hosts":[],"facts":["It often shelters and winters in prairie dog burrows.","Many gather in shared winter dens and spread out over the plains in spring.","Unlike the western diamondback, its tail lacks bold black and white rings.","Females give birth to live young."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Prairie rattlesnake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prairie_rattlesnake"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Prairie rattlesnake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prairie_rattlesnake"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Prairie rattlesnake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prairie_rattlesnake"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Prairie rattlesnake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prairie_rattlesnake"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Prairie rattlesnake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prairie_rattlesnake"}]}},{"id":"collared-lizard","name":"Eastern Collared Lizard","scientific":"Crotaphytus collaris","wiki":"Common_collared_lizard","range":"HIGH TRANS ROLL EDW CROSS 31b","group":"lizard","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS. It may bite hard if grabbed, so just watch it.","idTips":"A big-headed lizard, about a foot long, with two black bands across the back of the neck like a collar. Males are often bright green, blue or turquoise with a yellow head.","habitat":"Rocky hillsides, canyons, caprock breaks and boulder piles.","diet":"Grasshoppers, beetles and other insects, plus smaller lizards.","hosts":[],"facts":["Two black bands circle its neck like a collar.","It can run on its hind legs at high speed.","Males turn bright blue-green in spring."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Common collared lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_collared_lizard"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Common collared lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_collared_lizard"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Common collared lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_collared_lizard"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Common collared lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_collared_lizard"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Common collared lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_collared_lizard"}]}},{"id":"side-blotched-lizard","name":"Common Side-blotched Lizard","scientific":"Uta stansburiana","wiki":"Common_side-blotched_lizard","range":"TRANS 25k 25j 26c","group":"lizard","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS. Quick and shy; just watch.","idTips":"A small, brown, speckled lizard, about 5 inches long, with a dark blue-black blotch on each side just behind the front leg.","habitat":"Sandy and rocky desert, washes and yards.","diet":"Insects, spiders and scorpions.","hosts":[],"facts":["It is named for the dark blotch behind each front leg.","Males come in three throat colors with different mating strategies.","Most live only about a year.","It is one of the most common lizards in the desert."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Common Side-blotched Lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_side-blotched_lizard"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Common Side-blotched Lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_side-blotched_lizard"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Common Side-blotched Lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_side-blotched_lizard"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Common Side-blotched Lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_side-blotched_lizard"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Common Side-blotched Lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_side-blotched_lizard"}]}},{"id":"desert-cottontail","name":"Desert Cottontail","scientific":"Sylvilagus audubonii","wiki":"Desert_cottontail","range":"TRANS HIGH ROLL 31c 31d 30d","group":"mammal","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS.","idTips":"A gray-brown cottontail with longer, sparsely furred ears than the Eastern Cottontail and a white, cottony tail.","habitat":"Desert scrub, grassland and neighborhoods.","diet":"Grasses, leaves, cactus and mesquite pods.","hosts":[],"facts":["Its long ears help it shed desert heat.","It can climb low trees and sloping trunks.","It gets most of its water from plants.","It is most active at dawn and dusk."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Desert Cottontail","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desert_cottontail"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Desert Cottontail","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desert_cottontail"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Desert Cottontail","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desert_cottontail"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Desert Cottontail","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desert_cottontail"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Desert Cottontail","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Desert_cottontail"}]}},{"id":"couchs-spadefoot","name":"Couch's Spadefoot","scientific":"Scaphiopus couchii","wiki":"Couch%27s_spadefoot_toad","range":"TRANS STX HIGH ROLL RGV 34d","group":"amphibian","origin":"native","danger":"mild","dangerNote":"MILD. Its skin secretions irritate eyes and noses; wash your hands after handling.","idTips":"A plump, bright yellow-green toad mottled with black, with big golden eyes, vertical pupils and a black, spade-like ridge on each hind foot for digging.","habitat":"Desert flats and grassland; breeds in rain pools.","diet":"Termites, beetles and other insects.","hosts":[],"facts":["It spends most of the year buried underground.","Summer thunderstorms bring it up to breed in one night.","Its tadpoles can turn into toads in as little as 8 days.","A spade on each hind foot lets it dig backward into soil."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Couch's Spadefoot","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Couch%27s_spadefoot_toad"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Couch's Spadefoot","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Couch%27s_spadefoot_toad"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Couch's Spadefoot","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Couch%27s_spadefoot_toad"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Couch's Spadefoot","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Couch%27s_spadefoot_toad"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Couch's Spadefoot","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Couch%27s_spadefoot_toad"}]}},{"id":"western-massasauga","name":"Western Massasauga","scientific":"Sistrurus tergeminus","wiki":"Sistrurus_tergeminus","range":"HIGH ROLL CROSS BLACK STX 34b","group":"snake","origin":"native","danger":"venomous","dangerNote":"VENOMOUS. A small rattlesnake with a tiny, buzzy rattle that is easy to miss. It hides in grass, so watch where you step, back away, and get emergency care for any bite.","idTips":"A small, stout rattlesnake, 1.5 to 2.5 feet, gray to tan with rows of dark brown blotches, nine large scales on top of the head and a small rattle.","habitat":"Grassland, prairie and mesquite flats.","diet":"Mice, lizards and frogs.","hosts":[],"facts":["Its rattle is small and sounds like a buzzing insect.","Unlike most rattlesnakes, it has nine large scales on top of its head.","Its name comes from a Chippewa word for 'great river mouth.'","It is one of the smallest rattlesnakes in Texas."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Western massasauga","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sistrurus_tergeminus"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Western massasauga","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sistrurus_tergeminus"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Western massasauga","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sistrurus_tergeminus"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Western massasauga","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sistrurus_tergeminus"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Western massasauga","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sistrurus_tergeminus"}]}},{"id":"mule-deer","name":"Mule Deer","scientific":"Odocoileus hemionus","wiki":"Mule_deer","range":"TRANS HIGH 26c 27h 30d","group":"mammal","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS. Give bucks space during the fall rut, and never feed deer.","idTips":"A gray-brown deer with huge, mule-like ears, a white rump and a small, rope-like white tail tipped in black. Bucks' antlers fork and fork again.","habitat":"Desert mountains, canyons, brushy slopes and plains.","diet":"Shrubs, wildflowers, acorns and cactus fruit.","hosts":[],"facts":["Its big ears are shaped like a mule's.","It bounds on all four feet at once, a gait called stotting.","Its antlers fork evenly into two, then fork again.","Unlike the white-tailed deer, its tail is small and black-tipped."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Mule Deer","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mule_deer"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Mule Deer","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mule_deer"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Mule Deer","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mule_deer"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Mule Deer","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mule_deer"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Mule Deer","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mule_deer"}]}},{"id":"mountain-lion","name":"Mountain Lion","scientific":"Puma concolor","wiki":"Cougar","range":"TRANS 26c 30d 31c","group":"mammal","origin":"native","danger":"dangerous","dangerNote":"DANGEROUS, but attacks are very rare. If you meet one, don't run: stand tall, keep children close, face it, make noise and back away slowly. Fight back if attacked.","idTips":"A big, long-tailed, tawny cat, 6 to 8 feet long with the tail, with a small head, black-tipped ears and a long, black-tipped tail.","habitat":"Mountains, canyons and brushy country with deer.","diet":"Mostly deer, plus javelinas, rabbits and other mammals.","hosts":[],"facts":["It has more common names than any other American mammal: cougar, puma, panther and more.","It cannot roar; it purrs, hisses and makes chirps and screams.","One cat may roam over 100 square miles.","It is the largest wild cat living in Texas."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Mountain Lion","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cougar"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Mountain Lion","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cougar"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Mountain Lion","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cougar"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Mountain Lion","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cougar"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Mountain Lion","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cougar"}]}},{"id":"black-tailed-rattlesnake","name":"Black-tailed Rattlesnake","scientific":"Crotalus ornatus","wiki":"Black-tailed_rattlesnake","range":"TRANS EDW 30d","group":"snake","origin":"native","danger":"venomous","dangerNote":"VENOMOUS. Usually calm, but any rattlesnake bite is a medical emergency. Watch where you step and reach on rocky slopes, back away slowly, and get emergency care for any bite.","idTips":"A medium rattlesnake, greenish to olive or gray, with dark bands broken by pale centers and a solid black tail before the rattle. A dark mask on the face.","habitat":"Rocky slopes, canyons and mountain woods.","diet":"Rodents, rabbits and lizards.","hosts":[],"facts":["Its tail just before the rattle is solid black.","It often lives on rocky mountain slopes.","It is considered one of the calmer rattlesnakes.","Its color often matches the local rock."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Black-tailed Rattlesnake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black-tailed_rattlesnake"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Black-tailed Rattlesnake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black-tailed_rattlesnake"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Black-tailed Rattlesnake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black-tailed_rattlesnake"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Black-tailed Rattlesnake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black-tailed_rattlesnake"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Black-tailed Rattlesnake","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black-tailed_rattlesnake"}]}},{"id":"crevice-spiny-lizard","name":"Crevice Spiny Lizard","scientific":"Sceloporus poinsettii","wiki":"Sceloporus_poinsettii","range":"TRANS EDW 30d","group":"lizard","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS. It may bite if grabbed; just watch it.","idTips":"A big, spiny-scaled lizard with a bold black collar edged in white across the neck and dark bands on the tail. Males have blue belly patches.","habitat":"Cracks in cliffs, boulders and rock walls.","diet":"Insects and other small animals.","hosts":[],"facts":["It wedges itself into rock cracks and puffs up so it can't be pulled out.","A black collar edged in white crosses its neck.","Females give birth to live young.","Males flash blue belly patches."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Crevice Spiny Lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sceloporus_poinsettii"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Crevice Spiny Lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sceloporus_poinsettii"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Crevice Spiny Lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sceloporus_poinsettii"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Crevice Spiny Lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sceloporus_poinsettii"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Crevice Spiny Lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sceloporus_poinsettii"}]}},{"id":"greater-earless-lizard","name":"Greater Earless Lizard","scientific":"Cophosaurus texanus","wiki":"Greater_earless_lizard","range":"TRANS EDW STX 26c 27h 30d","group":"lizard","origin":"native","danger":"harmless","dangerNote":"HARMLESS.","idTips":"A slim, fast lizard with no ear openings, pale gray to tan with orange and yellow on the sides and two black bars near the belly. Its tail has black bands underneath.","habitat":"Open rocky ground, gravel washes and canyons.","diet":"Insects and spiders.","hosts":[],"facts":["It has no visible ear openings.","It curls its striped tail and waves it before running.","It is one of the fastest lizards in Texas.","Males show bright orange and yellow on their sides."],"refs":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Greater Earless Lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greater_earless_lizard"}],"factRefs":{"0":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Greater Earless Lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greater_earless_lizard"}],"1":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Greater Earless Lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greater_earless_lizard"}],"2":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Greater Earless Lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greater_earless_lizard"}],"3":[{"label":"Wikipedia: Greater Earless Lizard","url":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greater_earless_lizard"}]}}]}