Arachnids
Arizona bark scorpion
Centruroides sculpturatus
The Arizona bark scorpion is a small, pale scorpion of the Sonoran Desert and the most venomous in the US. Size, climbing habits, young, venom and real risk.
Habitat · 42 species
Animals of deserts
Animals adapted to heat and drought, from camels and fennec foxes to rattlesnakes, scorpions and roadrunners.
Species profiles
Mammals
Bactrian camel
Camelus bactrianus
The Bactrian camel is the two-humped camel of Central Asia, built for cold deserts. Its size, humps, winter coat, diet, lifespan and its rare wild relative.
Mammals
Bighorn sheep
Ovis canadensis
The bighorn sheep is a wild mountain sheep of western North America, famous for the huge curled horns of its rams. Size, climbing, rut, range and recovery.
Mammals
Black rhinoceros
Diceros bicornis
The black rhino is a critically endangered, hook-lipped browsing rhino of eastern and southern Africa. Its size, diet, behavior, poaching and slow recovery.
Birds
Budgerigar
Melopsittacus undulatus
The budgerigar is a small green-and-yellow parrot of Australia's dry interior that roams in nomadic flocks. Wild facts on its size, diet, nests and lifespan.
Arachnids
Carolina wolf spider
Hogna carolinensis
The Carolina wolf spider is North America's largest wolf spider, a burrowing night hunter with no web. Its size, range, eyeshine, egg sacs and real bite risk.
Reptiles
Central bearded dragon
Pogona vitticeps
The central bearded dragon is a spiny Australian lizard of dry woodland and desert. Facts on its size, beard display, arm-waving, diet, breeding and range.
Birds
Common ostrich
Struthio camelus
The common ostrich is the largest living bird, up to 2.75 m tall and 130 kg. Facts on its speed, two-toed feet, giant eggs, shared nests, range and status.
Arachnids
Deathstalker
Leiurus quinquestriatus
The deathstalker is a pale yellow desert scorpion of North Africa with one of the most potent scorpion venoms known. Size, range, hunting, young and real risk.
Insects
Desert locust
Schistocerca gregaria
The desert locust is a grasshopper that can switch from a shy loner to a swarming plague insect. Facts on its phases, swarms, diet, life cycle and upsurges.
Mammals
Dromedary camel
Camelus dromedarius
The dromedary is the one-humped camel of Arabia and North Africa. Its fat-filled hump, how it survives without water, size, lifespan and domestication.
Birds
Eurasian eagle-owl
Bubo bubo
The Eurasian eagle-owl is one of the largest owls on Earth, with orange eyes, ear tufts and a wingspan near 1.9 m. Size, diet, range, breeding and status.
Mammals
Fennec fox
Vulpes zerda
The fennec fox is the world's smallest fox, a Sahara desert specialist with huge ears. Facts on its size, burrows, diet, water, family life and status.
Reptiles
Galápagos giant tortoise
Chelonoidis niger
The Galápagos giant tortoise is the largest living tortoise and can live over 100 years. Island forms, domed and saddleback shells, size, diet and recovery.
Reptiles
Gila monster
Heloderma suspectum
The Gila monster is a slow, venomous lizard of the US Southwest and Mexico with beaded pink and black skin. Size, venom, diet, habitat, lifespan and protection.
Birds
Golden eagle
Aquila chrysaetos
The golden eagle is the most widespread eagle in the world, a dark brown hunter of hares and ground squirrels with 2 m wings. Size, range, diet and threats.
Birds
Great horned owl
Bubo virginianus
The great horned owl is a big, tufted owl found from Alaska to Central America. Facts on its size, deep hoots, strong grip, skunk-eating diet and winter nests.
Birds
Greater roadrunner
Geococcyx californianus
The greater roadrunner is a fast-running ground cuckoo of the US Southwest and Mexico. Facts on its speed, size, diet of lizards and snakes, nesting and status.
Mammals
Honey badger
Mellivora capensis
The honey badger, or ratel, is a tough mustelid of Africa and southern Asia. Facts on its loose skin, size, diet of snakes and bee larvae, range and lifespan.
Reptiles
Inland taipan
Oxyuranus microlepidotus
The inland taipan has the most toxic snake venom in mouse tests, yet it is shy and rarely seen. Size, color change, outback range, rat diet and real risk.
Reptiles
Leopard gecko
Eublepharis macularius
The leopard gecko is a spotted, ground-dwelling gecko of dry grassland and rocky hills in South Asia. Wild facts on its eyelids, fat tail, diet and breeding.
Birds
Mourning dove
Zenaida macroura
The mourning dove is a slender gray-brown North American dove known for its soft, sad cooing and whistling wings. Facts on size, diet, nests and lifespan.
Mammals
North American porcupine
Erethizon dorsatum
The North American porcupine is a large, tree-climbing rodent covered in about 30,000 barbed quills. Its size, bark diet, salt cravings, predators and range.
Birds
Northern mockingbird
Mimus polyglottos
The northern mockingbird is a gray songbird famous for copying other sounds. Facts on its size, songs, night singing, nest defense, range and lifespan.
Insects
Painted lady
Vanessa cardui
The painted lady is the most widespread butterfly on Earth, found on every continent except Antarctica. Its looks, host plants, life cycle and migration.
Mammals
Red kangaroo
Osphranter rufus
The red kangaroo is the largest living marsupial, a fast hopper of Australia's dry interior. Size, speed, boxing males, joeys, diet and surviving drought.
Insects
Sacred scarab
Scarabaeus sacer
The sacred scarab is a black ball-rolling dung beetle of the Mediterranean and North Africa, revered in ancient Egypt. Size, dung balls, larvae and range.
Mammals
Short-beaked echidna
Tachyglossus aculeatus
The short-beaked echidna is a spiny, egg-laying mammal of Australia and New Guinea that eats ants and termites. Size, spines, puggles, hibernation and lifespan.
Mammals
Spotted hyena
Crocuta crocuta
The spotted hyena is Africa's most common large carnivore, a skilled hunter living in female-led clans. Facts on its size, bite, diet, calls and lifespan.
Reptiles
Thorny devil
Moloch horridus
The thorny devil is a small, spike-covered lizard of Australia's deserts that eats only ants and drinks through grooves in its skin. Size, range and defenses.
Reptiles
Veiled chameleon
Chamaeleo calyptratus
The veiled chameleon is a large, casque-headed chameleon from Yemen and Saudi Arabia. Facts on its casque, colors, tongue, eyes, eggs, lifespan and range.
Reptiles
Western diamondback rattlesnake
Crotalus atrox
The western diamondback is the big coon-tailed rattlesnake of the US Southwest and Mexico. Size, ID, desert habitat, rodent diet, dens, behavior and venom.