Sonoran Desert Tortoise Spotted On The SCVN Lizard Walk (August 3, 2024) — Images by kenne
The Sonoran Desert tortoise, or Morafka’s desert tortoise, is a species of terrestrial chelonian reptile of the family Testudinidae native to the Sonoran Desert.
No matter where you live in North America, the sounds of summer are occasionally made by cicadas. In the desert southwest where, particularly large cicadas known as “cactus dodgers” (Cacama valvata) perch on prickly pear (Opuntia spp.) and cholla (Cylindropuntia imbricata) cacti and sing their loud, distinctive songs in the scorching, mid-summer heat.