The Sonoran Desert

The Sonoran Desert spreads across southern Arizona, southeastern California, and a large part of northwestern Mexico — the hottest desert in North America, yet also one of the greenest and most biologically rich. Its signature is the giant saguaro cactus, the iconic many-armed sentinel that grows nowhere else on Earth, towering up to 40 feet over a surprising abundance of desert life. Phoenix and Tucson sit within it.

What makes the Sonoran so lush by desert standards is its two rainy seasons — gentle winter rains and dramatic summer monsoon storms — which together support an astonishing variety of plants and animals. Palo verde and mesquite trees, cholla and prickly pear cactus, and a brief, brilliant wildflower bloom after wet winters all thrive here. It is the desert most people picture when they imagine the American Southwest.