Hobbies And Interests
Terrestrial Insects and Spiders
The largest animal group, Arthropoda, includes spiders, insects and crustaceans. In North American deserts, bees, beetles and even flies are drawn to flowering cacti, including the saguaro blossom in the Sonoran desert. Other beetle species, such as the longhorn and rhinoceros beetles, may consume cholla, prickly pear and saguaro cacti. Species of spider are relatively tolerant of extreme environmental conditions, and are able to adjust their core temperature and drink water, even from soil. Well-known spiders, like the black widow and tarantula, can be found in all four North American deserts. The scorpion, another arthropod common to all four deserts, uses a venomous sting to subdue insect prey.
Reptiles and Amphibians
Reptiles, the most dominant animal of the desert, exhibit a number of adaptations for dealing with extremes in temperature. The Gila monster, found in the Mojave, Sonoran and Chihuahuan deserts, stores fat in its tail, using the store during winter months. A number of snakes inhabit some or all of the North American deserts, including the long-nosed snake, Sonoran Mountain king snake and gopher snake. Amphibians have a more difficult time in the desert as they must reproduce in ephemeral pools created by thunderstorms. Many amphibian species, such as the Sonoran desert toad and spadefoot, an amphibian similar to a toad but with smooth skin, dig burrows that they may occupy for nine to ten months at a time.
Birds
The normal body temperature of birds is higher than that of mammals, giving them a slight advantage in dealing with desert heat. A number of birds species migrate through or reside permanently in North American deserts. The gilded flicker and Gila woodpecker -- both woodpeckers -- reside permanently in the desert, using cacti instead of trees. Raptors have acclimated well to deserts, including the prairie falcon, kestrel, Cooper's hawk and the world's smallest owl, the elf owl, which nests in the saguaro cactus. Migrants include tanagers, western white-winged doves and some hummingbirds, including the rufous hummingbird, the longest migrant on earth based on body length. All hummingbirds are native to the Americas, over a dozen species of which inhabit the Sonoran Desert.
Mammals
Deserts support relatively few large mammals as they generally are not capable of withstanding extreme temperatures or storing sufficient water. Likewise, the desert offers little shade protection to mammals larger than rodents. Hooved animals include the boar-like javelina or collared peccary, mule deer, desert bighorn sheep and pronghorn. Rodents are far more plentiful, including the kangaroo rat, which can survive without drinking any water, as well as packrats, pocket gophers and cactus mice. As with reptiles, many of these species retreat to underground burrows to avoid the heat of day. A variety of bats make the desert their home, many of which are essential pollinators of cacti, including the lesser long-nosed bat, which feed on agave nectar.
Fish and Aquatic Invertebrates
Seldom thought of as a desert resident, one-third of native fish fauna of North America historically occupied the deserts of the West. Today, these species and their habitats are threatened due to a number of human factors. The four American deserts sustain 179 native fish species, 59 of which are federally listed as endangered. Fish, like the speckled dace, Yaqui chub and Meadow Valley Wash sucker, inhabit desert rivers, ephemeral and persistent streams, springs, arroyos, cienegas and even puddles. A number of aquatic invertebrates occupy these same areas. Mayfly and blackfly larvae or nymphs occupy the riffles of streams. Aquatic beetles, water boatmen and water scorpions persist in slower-moving water.