The "volatile" smell you describe is exactly what I am referring to. Ants of Dolichoderinae produce these pheremones. Many of these ants are probably more common in the eastern US. I'm not as well versed in entomology, but in the last few years I have learned to learn something about insects too. Something that has a smell, especially a "volatile" smell, is something to stay away from.

In the case of the lawn ant Iridomyrmex pruinosus, the alarm pheremone is 2-heptanone; which is made up of 49 ketones and 35 nonketone chemicals. It is these ants which Richard Montanucci fed to several of his HL's, which killed many of them.

I am not quite so versed as Richard Montanucci...nor do I consider myself very proficient in the study of ants just yet. But, I do have common sense and some experience with reptiles. That tells me that many ants and other insects, which are not known common prey items to HL's, could be potentially deadly.

If Richard Montanucci can make such a mistake, then I'm going to play it safe with insect identification and not give a HL anything that is in question. Especially if that species of insect does not naturally reside in his native territory.

It would, therefore, be adviseable that novices to Horned Lizards or entomology should be less cavalier than they usually are.


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"A man that should call everything by it's right name, would hardly pass the streets without being knocked down as a common enemy." The Complete Works of George Savile, First Marquess of Halifax 1912,246

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