Arizona Animals

Arizona wildlife exhibits great variety and many different animal species, including mammals, reptiles, birds, etc., that are found in this state. The state of Arizona is characterized by geographical features such as deserts, pine forests and mountainous regions. Naturally, the Arizona animals found are of a great variety. A few of the native animals of Arizona are discussed in the following paragraphs.

Arizona Animals List

The following list contains some of the popular and important animals of Arizona. The elks, pumas and other animals are described in a detailed manner.

Arizona Elk: The second largest animal in deer family, the elks (bull) weigh between 600 and 800 pounds. A cow (female elk) weighs around 450-600 lbs. These animals can reach a speed of 40 miles/hr. The elks can also run long distances at a consistent speed of 30 miles/hr. Lifespan of these elks is 14-16 yr. Elks can also swim and their jump can go up to a height of 10 feet. Diet of elks include foliage and grasses, while its predators are coyotes and mountain lions. Casting of antlers in adult elks takes place in the period between January and March. For the younger ones/sub-adults, this period is between March and May. The Arizona elks are known to prefer forested lands with high altitude (7000-10,000 feet). During winter season, elks migrate toward areas of lesser altitude. The Mogollon Rim, White Mountains and Kaibab forest are the areas where these elks are mostly found. Areas in which herds of elks are found include the Payson, Williams, Flagstaff, Overgaard, Heber, Pinetop Lakeside, Show, etc.

Black Bear: The only kind of bear found in state of Arizona, black bear (male) weighs between 115 and 600 lbs; weight of the female bears range from 90 to 400 lbs. It can reach a height (or length) of 7 feet. These are shy creatures and prefer to live a solitary life. The only type/form of group found in these bears is that of mother accompanied by cubs. The black bear primarily feed on berries, roots, cactus fruit, insects, etc. In few cases the bears also prey on livestock animals. Hibernation period of black bears start in the month of November and extends up to March. The female bears reach adulthood and are able to reproduce by the age of 4 years. Weight of the newborn cubs is less than 1 pound; cubs in most cases are born in pairs. Black bears can survive both in forested and desert regions. Territories of these black bears can range from 5-50 sq. miles. Areas in Arizona where black bears are commonly found include the Mogollan Rim, White Mountains and Phoenix.

Mountain Lions: The mountain lions are also referred to by names like puma and cougars. These animals exhibit the behavior of preying by ambush. It is fourth largest animal in cat family; the first three being tiger, lion and jaguar. Pumas have a height of 2.7 feet up to their shoulders; body length is around 8 feet. Adult cougars weigh around 115-160 lbs. Skin coat of these lions has a tawny shade. This carnivorous animal preys on different creatures including deer, antelopes, elks, wild horses, bighorn sheep and other livestock animals. Cougars are agile creatures and they can jump up to the height of 18 feet; horizontal leap of the pumas can cover a distance of 40 feet. Habitat of mountain lions is diverse and includes regions like Rimrock canyons, forests situated at high elevations and mountainous deserts. Mountain lions live a solitary life and come together only at the time of mating. Territory of cougars is not defined and it can be smaller or greater depending on the availability of prey.

Coyotes: The coyotes are animals which resemble dogs. These creatures are a bit smaller than wolves and larger in comparison to dogs. Coyotes can grow up to a height of 40 inches while their average weight is 50 lbs. These agile creatures can run at a speed of 40 miles/hr. The coyotes live in groups and hunting is carried out at night. Territory of the coyotes is in the radius of 15 miles with their den being the center. Coyotes mainly feed on the rabbits, voles, squirrels and mice. Birds, snakes, lizards and even larger animals like deer form their diet. Gestation period of coyotes lasts for about 60 days and the litter size ranges from 1 to 19. Coyotes are found in a variety of habitats including mountainous regions to forests.

Venomous Animals of Arizona
The venomous Arizona animals can be categorized into following categories: vertebrates and invertebrates. Let us have a look at the different venomous animals found in Arizona.

Vertebrates: Snakes, lizards and the toads are vertebrates found in Arizona. The rattlesnake is amongst important types of Arizona snakes. It is also one of the most poisonous snakes found in USA. Coralsnake is not very poisonous and has a small size. The coralsnake is not considered to be a threat for human beings. Rear-fanged snake, just like the coralsnake is small in size and produces mild venom. Toads have poisonous glands placed behind the eyes and on top of the head portion. Bufotenine is the neurotoxic venom produced by these toads. Venom produced by Gila monster lizards is used for the purpose of defense and process of digestion.

Invertebrates: The scorpions and spiders are amongst important invertebrates from Arizona that produce venom. There are 56 scorpion species found in the Arizona state. Amongst all scorpion species in USA, the bark scorpion (Centruroides exilicauda) is considered as the most toxic. Spiders are venomous and they use the toxins for preying on other invertebrates. Bees are known to use their venom for defense and protecting the hive. Other venomous invertebrates found in Arizona are ants, wasps, blister beetles, conenose bugs, centipedes and caterpillars.

List of Endangered Animals in Arizona
Here is a list of animals from Arizona that are on the verge of extinction.

Jaguar	Grizzly Bear
Lesser Long-Nosed Bat	Kanab Ambersnail
Yaqui Catfish	Gila Chub
Eskimo Curlew	California Condor
Black-Footed Ferret	Northern Aplomado Falcon
Chiricahua Leopard Frog	Southwestern Willow Flycatcher
Loach Minnow	Sinaloan Jaguarundi
Sonoran Pronghorn	Mexican Spotted Owl
Ocelot	Yuma Clapper Rail
Desert Pupfish	Sonora Tiger Salamander
Spikedace	Beautiful Shiner
Mount Graham Red Squirrel	Little Colorado Spinedace
Razorback Sucker	Apache Trout
Gila Topminnow	Gray Wolf

The different animals found in Arizona give us an idea of the diverse fauna of this state. There are few Arizona animal species which have become endangered. It is necessary to protect the remaining animals species of Arizona from becoming extinct.