Horny Elephant Lizard

The time is the year 1540, and the place is Arizona. The Conquistador Francisco Vazquez de Coronado is leading an expedition to find Cibola, one of the Seven Cities of Gold. His indian guide is passionately telling him that just over the next rise is the golden city. But Coronado can go no farther. He's on his knees in the sand, vomiting over and over again. "What is that horrible smell?", he asks plaintively.

That horrible smell was a nest of Horny Elephant Lizards. Coronado returned home, claiming that the city was a lie, but the truth was that he couldn't bear to take one more step in the direction of that scent. In fact, it's just as well that he chose to turn back, since a nest that strong most likely would have killed him. Roughly 35 people a year are killed by Horny Elephant Lizard fumes in Arizona and New Mexico, despite repeated warnings and signage.

The Lizard's distinctive scent is the result of special skin glands that actually secrete a gas poisonous to mammals. The Lizards hunt in packs, athough "hunt" may be too aggressive a word, since what they actually do is wander around their territory, literally picking up all the creatures that fall down and bringing them home to their lair.

Aside from its strong smell, the Lizard is relatively harmless. And on its own, its smell is not concentrated enough to do much damage. Therefore it spends virtually its entire life in a "pack" or "nest". Females lay eggs together and the young are nurtured by the group.

In the arts and culture, the Horny Elephant Lizard is best known for being the model for the Japanese movie monster Godzilla.