Desert Animals…

Cool Facts Every First Grader Should Know

Tarantula• World’s largest spider• Some are so big they

can eat lizards, bugs, and mice.

• Hairs vibrate to inform them of nearby animals.

Dromedary Camel• This animal

can drink 27 gallons of water in a few minutes!

Javelina• Favorite

food Prickly Pear Cactus

• Mostly active at night and early morning

Coyote

• Has a great nose that can smell very far away and even underground!

Gecko

• At night their narrow eyes open to help them catch flies!

Grasshopper Mouse

• Tiny whiskers help them smell grasshoppers from far away and also warn them about nearby coyotes.

Rattlesnake• Rattle at the end

of their body warns off enemies before they attack with their poisonous venom.

Jackrabbit• Blood vessels in

their large ears give off heat and keep their body cool.

Roadrunner• Can run 15 miles

an hour.

• Two toes point forward and two point back which allows it to run fast and catch lizards.

Gila Monster• One of 2

poisonous lizards in the world.

• Can go a year or more without eating (it lives off the fat in its tail!)

Kangaroo Rat• Strong legs

make it an excellent burrower.

• This animal never needs to drink water.

Horned Lizard

• Can shoot blood from its lower eyelid as far as 4 feet!

Gila Woodpecker• Chisels out nests

in a Saguaro cactus and feeds plant’s food to its babies.

Elf Owl• This nocturnal

bird feeds on insects it finds near around the Saguaro.

Scorpion• Grabs victims

with its pinchers and stings them with the poison in its tail.

Sidewinder• Moves along the

desert by throwing its body into two loops and pushes against the ground to create parallel marks.

Sandfish• This creature

burrows into the sand and wiggles along so fast that it seems like it is swimming under the sand!