Scott,

Actually they occur north at least to near Ellensburg. The Yakima
Indians have a name for them: hliihlawit, which roughly translates as "of
the root diggers," referring I suspect to their association with the
lithosol patches where Indian women look for bitteroot and Lomatiums.
They are respected as "Indian doctors," to be treated with respect.
This is typically in the "timberless transition" lifezone, particularly
where there is exposed basalt foundation with soil in the cracks
between... dominated by dwarf sagebrush species like Artemisia cana,
etc. I've found them on ridges above Hardy Canyon east of Wenas
Campground, at various places on the Yakima Indian Reservation... They
may occur actually north nearly to the Canadian border if not in s. BC.

Gene Hunn (hunn at u.washington.edu)

On Sun, 11 Sep 1994 SCRAY at delphi.com wrote:

> 11 JUN 1994
>
>
> Tweeters,
>
> Although not a bird subject, this may be of interest to the naturalist in you.
>
> As one who enjoys finding snakes, lizards, amphibians and other 'herps' as well
> as birds, I spend much of my birding time watching the roads and pathways
> hoping to spot one of these creatures. Having been raised in Alaska where
> reptiles are absent (except possibly sea turtles), I spent many childhood hours
> pouring over the Peterson series guide to western reptiles fantasizing about
> finding snakes and lizards if I ever found myself where they live.
>
> It appears that the ranges of many western herps reach their northern extent
> in Washington. This is true as well for the Pygmy Horned Lizard which,
> according to the range maps in Peterson, is at its northern limit somewhere
> near the Tricities area. As a college student in the late 1970s, a friend
> reported finding them near Horn Rapids on the lower Yakima River in central
> Benton County.
>
> I have not been able find them anywhere in Washington until today when my two
> sons found three horned lizards in central Yakima County in the foothills of
> the Cascades. This is 70 miles west by northwest of the only other site I know
> of, and 1300 feet higher (1900 ft). I was quite surprised to find them at this
> altitude and this close to the mountains. They were less than 5 miles from
> thick forests of Ponderosa Pine.
>
> Two of the lizards were measured at 3 cm. and one at 8.2 cm.
>
> Questions: Do any of you have experience with these animals in Washington?
>
> Are they as rare in here as they have appeared to be to me for
> so many years?
>
>
> Scott Ray
> SCRAY at DELPHI.COM
>