NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Giant Horned Lizard
Phrynosoma asio Cope, 1864
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Giant Horned Lizard (Phrynosoma asio) in Mexico
Wouter Beukema · CC BY 4.0 · Image sourceProvider-generated thumbnail requested at 800 pixels; no local editing Local WebP display rendition; resized without cropping.
Open encyclopedia reference
The giant horned lizard (Phrynosoma asio) is a species of phrynosomatid lizard which is endemic to the Pacific coast of southern Mexico. It is the largest horned lizard and is also the most slender (it has a more typical lizard-like appearance). It is able to survive in the desert. The spines on its back and sides are made from modified scales, whereas the horns on its head are true horns (i.e., they have a bony core). They are commonly named for their large size, which can reach up to 6 to 8 inches (15 to 20 cm) from snout to tail, hence the name.
Wikipedia contributors, Giant horned lizard; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T08:20:06.952263+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Phrynosoma asio Cope, 1864
- Name authority
- Cope, 1864
- Common name
- Giant Horned Lizard
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Reptilia
- Order
- Squamata
- Family
- Phrynosomatidae
- Genus
- Phrynosoma
- Extinction status
- Not supplied by this source
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classReptilia Laurenti, 1768
- orderSquamata Oppel, 1811
- suborderIguania
- familyPhrynosomatidae
- genusPhrynosoma
- speciesPhrynosoma asio Cope, 1864
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Phrynosoma. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Short-tail Horned LizardPhrynosoma braconnieri Bocourt, 1870 | PhrynosomatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Texas Horned LizardPhrynosoma cornutum (Harlan, 1825) | PhrynosomatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Rock Horned LizardPhrynosoma ditmarsi Stejneger, 1906 | PhrynosomatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Pigmy Short-horned LizardPhrynosoma douglasii (Bell, 1829) | PhrynosomatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Baur’s Short-horned Lizard [bauri]Phrynosoma hernandesi Girard, 1858 | PhrynosomatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Flat-tail Horned LizardPhrynosoma mcallii (Hallowell, 1852) | PhrynosomatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| San Diego Horned LizardPhrynosoma blainvillii Gray, 1839 | PhrynosomatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Cedros Island Horned LizardPhrynosoma cerroense Stejneger, 1893 | PhrynosomatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Coast Horned LizardPhrynosoma coronatum (Blainville, 1835) | PhrynosomatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Roundtail Horned LizardPhrynosoma modestum Girard, 1852 | PhrynosomatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Mountain Horned LizardPhrynosoma orbiculare (Linnaeus, 1758) | PhrynosomatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
| Desert Horned LizardPhrynosoma platyrhinos Girard, 1852 | PhrynosomatidaeChordata | Accepted speciesExtinction status not supplied |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Phrynosoma spinimentum Peters, 1874 Peters, 1874 | synonym |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/species?genus=Phrynosoma&species=asio Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:6VDQ4. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.