List of birds of the Sonoran Desert facts for kids
The Sonoran Desert is a really hot and dry place in North America, covering parts of Arizona, California, and Mexico. Even though it's so dry, many amazing birds call it home! This article will tell you about some of the special birds that live here. Some of these birds are endemic, which means they live only in the Sonoran Desert and nowhere else. Others are native, meaning they live here but can also be found in other places.
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The Greater Roadrunner is a fast runner!
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The Gila Woodpecker, Melanerpes uropygialis, makes its home in cacti.
Contents
Birds of the Hot Desert Areas
Many unique birds live in the hottest parts of the Sonoran Desert. This includes areas in southwestern Arizona, parts of Baja California, and northern Mexico. Some of these birds are found only in these super-hot desert spots.
- Gila woodpecker, Melanerpes uropygialis
* This bird is special because it lives only in the hottest deserts. It often makes its nests inside saguaro cacti!
- Le Conte's thrasher, Toxostoma lecontei
* You'll find this thrasher mainly in the Sonoran Desert, and sometimes in southern Nevada.
- Abert's towhee, Melozone aberti
* This bird is truly a Sonoran Desert resident! It's mostly found right here.
Other Cool Desert Birds
Here are more birds that live in the Sonoran Desert, though some of them also live in other areas.
- Costa's hummingbird, Calypte costae
- Gambel's quail, Callipepla gambelii
- Black rail, Laterallus jamaicensis
* This small bird lives in the Sonoran Desert of southwest Arizona, but also in other places.
- Greater roadrunner, Geococcyx californianus
* You might know this speedy bird from cartoons! It lives in the Sonoran Desert but also has a very wide range across other areas.
- Gilded flicker, Colaptes chrysoides
- Vermilion flycatcher, Pyrocephalus rubinus
- Brown-crested flycatcher, Myiarchus tyrannulus
- Black-tailed gnatcatcher, Polioptila melanura
* This gnatcatcher also lives east and south into the Chihuahuan Desert in Texas and Mexico.
- Crissal thrasher, Toxostoma crissale
* This thrasher's range extends south into Central Mexico.
- Curve-billed thrasher, Toxostoma curvirostre
- Phainopepla, Phainopepla nitens
* This sleek, black bird also lives in California's San Joaquin Valley.
- Lucy's warbler, Oreothlypis luciae
* This warbler is special because it spends its summers only in the Sonoran Desert, including the Colorado River Valley, the Grand Canyon, and southern Nevada.
- Black-throated sparrow, Amphispiza bilineata
* These sparrows breed permanently in the Sonoran Desert, but their range also goes east to Texas and even north to southern Oregon and Idaho in the summer.
- Yellow-headed blackbird, Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus
* You can find these bright blackbirds permanently in the southern part of the Lower Colorado River Valley.
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Greater
roadrunner -
Gila woodpecker
Melanerpes uropygialis -
Abert's towhee
Melozone aberti -
Phainopepla
Phainopepla nitens -
Yellow-headed
Blackbird
Xanthocephalus
xanthocephalus
Birds of the Southeastern Sonoran Desert
The southeastern part of Arizona has a different kind of landscape. It has tall mountains that are like "sky islands" – isolated mountains surrounded by desert. These mountains are part of a larger chain that goes into Mexico. This unique mix of mountains and desert, along with its closeness to the Gulf of California, Gulf of Mexico, and the Pacific Ocean, creates a special home for many different birds.
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Abert's towhee
Melozone aberti -
Phainopepla
Phainopepla nitens -
Yellow-headed
Blackbird
Xanthocephalus
xanthocephalus
See also
