Monsoon Season Species (August 2020 EcoQuest Guide)
This guide will help with identification of the plants, animals and insects included in the August 2020 EcoQuest.
Observing these plants and animals in metro Phoenix increases our understanding of how these Sonoran Desert species are connected to the monsoon season, and encourages ...more ↓
creosote bush
Larrea tridentata is known as creosote bush and greasewood as a plant, chaparral as a medicinal herb, and as gobernadora in Mexico, Spanish for "governess", due to its ability to secure more water by inhibiting the growth of nearby plants. In Sonora, it is more commonly called hediondilla....
velvet mesquite
Prosopis velutina, commonly known as velvet mesquite, is a small to medium-sized perennial tree. It is a legume adapted to a dry, desert climate. Though considered to be a noxious weed in states outside its natural range, it plays a vital role in the ecology of the Sonoran Desert.
honey mesquite
Prosopis glandulosa, commonly known as honey mesquite, is a species of small to medium-sized, thorny shrub or tree in the legume family (Fabaceae).
screwbean mesquite
Prosopis pubescens, commonly known as screwbean mesquite, is a species of flowering shrub or small tree in the pea family, Fabaceae, that is native to the southwestern United States (Texas, Arizona, New Mexico, California, southern Nevada and Utah) and northern Mexico (Baja California, Chihuahua, Coahuila, Sonora).
Chilean Mesquite
Prosopis chilensis is a species of tree in the genus Prosopis, belonging to the family Fabaceae. It is found in parts of central Chile, southern Peru and Andean (northwestern) Argentina. Its common names include Chilean mesquite (algarrobo chileno, in Spanish) or Chilean algarrobo. It is used for providing shade, for animal feed and for firewood.
Palo Verde Root Borer
Derobrachus hovorei is a species of beetle in the Cerambycidae family. It was described by Santos-Silva in 2007.
Palo Verde Borer
Derobrachus geminatus, known variously as the palo verde beetle, palo verde root borer, or palo verde borer beetle, is a longhorn beetle native to the American Southwest and northern Mexico which derives its name from the palo verde tree. It is one of the largest beetles in North America and can reach up to three and a half inches in length. ...more ↓
Scrub Cicadas
Diceroprocta is a genus of scrub cicadas in the family Cicadidae. There are at least 60 described species in Diceroprocta.
Black Witch
The erebid moth Ascalapha odorata, commonly known as the black witch moth, is a large bat-shaped, dark-colored nocturnal moth, found from Brazil until the southern United States. It is the largest noctuid found in the continental United States. In the folklore of many cultures in Latin America and the Caribbean, it is associated with death or misfortune.
Couch's Spadefoot
Couch's spadefoot toad or Couch's spadefoot (Scaphiopus couchii) is a species of North American spadefoot toad (family Scaphiopodidae). The specific epithet couchii is in honor of American naturalist Darius Nash Couch, who collected the first specimen while on a personal expedition to northern Mexico to collect plant, mineral, and animal specimens for the ...more ↓
little-leaved palo verde
Parkinsonia microphylla, the yellow paloverde, foothill paloverde or little-leaved palo verde; syn. Cercidium microphyllum), is a species of palo verde.
blue palo verde
Parkinsonia florida, the blue palo verde (syn. Cercidium floridum), is a species of palo verde native to the Sonoran Deserts in the Southwestern United States and Northwestern Mexico. Its name means "green pole or stick" in Spanish, referring to the green trunk and branches, that perform photosynthesis.
Desert Hackberry
Celtis ehrenbergiana, called the desert hackberry or spiny hackberry, is a plant species that has long been called C. pallida by many authors, including in the "Flora of North America" database. It is native to Arizona, Florida, New Mexico and Texas, and to Latin America as far south as northern Argentina. It grows in dry locations such as deserts, ...more ↓
desert unicorn-plant
Proboscidea althaeifolia is a species of flowering plant in the family Martyniaceae known by the common names desert unicorn-plant and yellow-flowered devil's claw. It is native to the desert southwest of the United States, where it grows in sandy habitat and blooms during the hot summer. This is a perennial herb growing from a thick, tuberlike yellow root. The ...more ↓
Doubleclaw
Proboscidea parviflora is a species of flowering plant in the family Martyniaceae known by the common names doubleclaw and red devil's-claw. It is native to the desert southwest of the United States and northern Mexico, where it grows in sandy, dry, and disturbed habitat and blooms during the hot summer. This is an annual herb growing from a taproot and producing ...more ↓
Arizona poppy
Kallstroemia grandiflora, the Arizona poppy, is a summer annual herb of the deserts of the Southwestern United States, California, and northern Mexico.
Desert Blonde Tarantula
Aphonopelma chalcodes, commonly known as the western desert tarantula, Arizona blond tarantula or Mexican blond tarantula is a species of spider belonging to the family Theraphosidae. It has a limited distribution in the deserts of Arizona and adjacent parts of Mexico but can be very common within this range. The common name "blond tarantula" refers to the ...more ↓
Morafka’s Desert Tortoise
The desert tortoises (Gopherus agassizii and Gopherus morafkai ) are two species of tortoise native to the Mojave and Sonoran Deserts of the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico and the Sinaloan thornscrub of northwestern Mexico. G. agassizii is distributed in western Arizona, southeastern California, southern Nevada, and southwestern Utah. The ...more ↓
Desert Clicker Grasshopper
Ligurotettix coquilletti, known generally as the desert clicker grasshopper or creosote bush grasshopper, is a species of slant-faced grasshopper in the family Acrididae. It is found in Central America and North America.
