Greater short-horned lizard Greater short-horned lizard The greater short-horned lizard ("Phrynosoma hernandesi"), also commonly known as the mountain short-horned lizard, is a species of lizard endemic to western North America. Like other horned lizards, it is often called a "horned toad" or "horny toad", but it is not a toad at all. It is a reptile, not an amphibian. It is one of seven native species of lizards in Canada. The specific name, "hernandesi", honors Francisco Hernández (1514–1587) a Spanish physician who wrote an early account of a horned lizard, which was published in 1615. The greater short-horned lizard is often mistaken for
Monoceros (legendary creature) impossible to capture alive. In today's English language, the term "monoceros" typically refers to a unicorn or similar one-horned creature. Monoceros (legendary creature) The monoceros () is a legendary animal with only one horn. It derives from the Greek word "Μονόκερως", a compound word from μόνος ("monos") which means "only one" / "single" and κέρας ("keras") (neuter gender, which means "horn". The monoceros was first described in Pliny the Elder's "Natural History" as a creature with the body of a horse, the head of a stag (minus the antlers), the feet of an elephant, and the tail of a wild