Monthly Archives: February 2025

Short-horned Walking Stick

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I’ve only found a few Walking Stacks in my travels, but these bizarre-looking, slow-moving, plant-eating insects are hard not to like. Not only do they have a widespread distribution, fossil records indicate that they have evolutionary roots that reach back more than 200 million years, to the Triassic geologic period.

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These intriguing creatures have raised camouflage to a art form. This is the only example of one that I’ve ever found in the desert and it’s easy to see how well it blends in with dead twigs. Its taxonomic family name, “Phasmatidae,” is derived from the Greek word “Phasma,” which means, appropriately, phantom or apparition.

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Short-horned Walking Sticks are found in dry, arid regions of the Southwestern United States in the Summer and Autumn. Their habitat is in chaparral and open fields where they can be found feeding on the foliage of Globemallow, Deerweed, and other native plants.

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The “short-horned” part of their common name refers to their antenna, which are just little stubs. The species that lives near me has much longer antenna, about one-third of the insect’s body.

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The walking stick is the longest of all the modern insects, with a documented specimen from Borneo measuring more than two feet in length. Its other common names: Specter, Devil’s Horse, Devil’s Darning Needle and Witch’s Horse – reflect its hold on the human imagination.

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California Goldfield

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It was hard not to notice this wildflower while travelling around the Las Vegas area – in some cases, it was growing right along the edge of the road.

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This species is native to a large part of California, Oregon and surrounding areas, where it is a very common member of the flora community in a number of habitats.

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Large populations of this species bloom at once in the Spring to produce the carpets of yellow on hillsides and in meadows – this phenomenon gives this plant its common name.

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California Goldfield is usually just a few inches tall, with many short, slender, reddish-green stems bearing narrow leaves, mostly near the base.

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With a flower no larger than a quarter, it attracts a variety of pollinators, including bees and butterflies.

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California Goldfields are variable in appearance as they adapt to their environment. The plants grow taller with more rainfall, whereas the leaves grow smaller and tougher with less rainfall.

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This tough species is known to tolerate soil better that is less than optimal for other plants.

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Cliff Chipmunk

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While exploring the Cerbat Mountains in Arizona, I came across my first-ever example of this small, bushy-tailed squirrel that typically lives along cliff walls or boulder fields bordering pinyon-juniper woodlands in the Western United States and Mexico.

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Rather than being brown like a typical chipmunk, it instead has a ground color that is mostly smoky gray. This rodent forages for juniper berries, pine seeds, and acorns. It is an opportunistic in its diet and consumes a wide range of plant material. Seeds are gathered during their prime availability and are carried in cheek pouches and to temporary caches.

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This delightful little ground squirrel is a cousin of the Eastern Chipmunk, albeit smaller. Unlike many species of chipmunk, the Cliff Chipmunk lacks bold stripes on its back – instead they are rather faded. This animal’s size varies from 8 to 10 inches, and they weigh an average of 2-1⁄2 ounces. They have a remarkably long lifespan for a mammal of their size, with one specimen living 12-1⁄2 years.

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It was an unexpectedly fun find to watch this creature easily maneuver about the rocky terrain habitat.

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Plateau Lizard

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I often see this reptile while driving through the Cerbat Mountains in Arizona; I have also encountered it in Zion National Park in Utah.

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This is a relatively small lizard with brown to golden-brown coloration and pointed, keeled, overlapping scales. It can sport a range of striped or blotched patterns.

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The Plateau Fence Lizard is usually encountered in relatively open, sunlit areas with plenty of basking sites such as rock piles, wood piles, and fallen logs.

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This sit-and-wait predator watches for prey and makes occasional forays from perches to capture its food. It feeds on a variety of insects including termites, ants, beetles, grasshoppers, flies, larvae and wasps. It also eats a variety of spiders, snails, and small lizards.

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These reptiles are active during the day. During the Summer, they are most active mid-morning and late afternoon. Males will head bob, do push ups, and even puff themselves up to warn-off other individuals. In Spring and Fall they can be active all day long.

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Plateau Lizards were formerly considered to be a subspecies of Eastern Fence Lizard, but were elevated to a separate species in 2002.

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These lizards, like Fence Lizards, are habitat generalists. They can be found on the ground, on rocks, on logs and even in areas heavily disturbed by people.

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It’s nice to have a leisurely drive up the mountains and see these reptiles perched on rocks, catching the sun’s rays and hoping for an insect to come within catching range.

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