The Arizona desert includes part of the Sonoran Desert, a large area in the Southwestern U.S. that encompasses parts of California and Mexico. Although the climate is dry and hot, it's one of the wettest deserts in the United States, getting between three and 16 inches per year, according to Blue Plant Biomes. Animals in the Arizona desert include a variety of mammals, reptiles, birds and amphibians.
Mammals found in the Arizona desert include the round-tailed ground squirrel, a tan rodent with a long, less bushy tail than most squirrels. The black-tailed jackrabbit is a large brown rabbit with black-tipped ears, differentiating it from the antelope jackrabbit, another Arizona desert resident with white-tipped ears. Kangaroo rats differ in size depending on species but are tan in color, hop on their hind legs and maintain balance with their tails, characteristics that give kangaroo rats their name. Other Arizona desert mammals include the coyote, rock squirrel, gray fox and kit fox.
Birds that make the Arizona desert their home include the red-tailed hawk, a large hawk whose colors vary from very light to black and features red tail feathers. The black-throated sparrow is grayish brown with a black breast and throat and white stripes above and below its eyes. Greater roadrunners have wings and backs that are streaked with brown and white with a crest and have heavy bills.
Arizona desert reptiles include the Gila monster, which grows to about 1 1/2 feet long with yellowish/pinkish and is identified by black scale patterns and black tongue and snout. The short-horned lizard is a small tan to gray reptile with a flat body and a single row of spines. Horns are at the back of its head. The western diamondback rattlesnake stretches to 4 feet in length and has tan brown colors with diamond-shaped markings down the center of its back. These snakes have light, diagonal stripes stretching from behind their eyes to their upper lips, according to Pima Community College's information on Tuscon desert ecology.
Amphibians in the Arizona desert are less plentiful than other animal species. These include the tiger salamander, which grows to little over 6 inches and features black and greenish-tan color patterns and stripes. The small, round red-spotted toad is whitish-brown in color with red bumps and has a pointed snout. The canyon tree frog is another small toad that easily blends into its surroundings and is dark gray to brown with black blotches all over its body.
