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Habitat Hub
Factsheets and other helpful resources about the wildlife species living on your land (US only)
Dickcissel
Dickcissels gather in large flocks for fall and spring migration, up to thousands of birds. On their winter range, flocks may be as large as millions of birds, and these flocks can inflict substantial damage on agricultural crops in South America.
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Poweshiek Skipperling
Poweshiek skipperling butterfly populations have shown a well-documented collapse in less than a decade between 2000 and 2010, with likely extirpation of over 95% of the populations. In 2000, Poweshiek skipperling was known from native prairie remnants in Iowa, Minnesota, North and South Dakota, and Wisconsin and in fens in Michigan. By 2010, it was no longer found in the Dakotas, Minnesota, and Iowa. The original core habitat range for the species was orders of magnitude larger than the current range. The cause of this wide-spread decline is still unknown.
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Dakota skipper
Dakota skippers spend most of their life as larvae or caterpillars from approximately late July until the following June or July. After hatching, larvae form shelters of silk at the base of grass plants and construct larger shelters as they grow. Dakota skipper larvae overwinter either in these shelters or in buried shelters.
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Texas Kangaroo Rat
Texas kangaroo rats rarely need to drink water. They’re highly adapted to arid environments where standing water is scarce and get moisture from vegetation. They also have cheek pouches which they use to gather grass seeds and store them in their underground burrows to survive drought.
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Lesser Long-nosed Bat
The lesser long-nosed bat pollinates saguaro, cardon, and organ pipe cactus and agave flowers. As the bat feeds on the nectar, the bat’s face and neck fur become covered with pollen. Lesser long-nosed bats also disperse the seeds of the columnar cacti fruits by feeding on them.
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Swainson’s Hawk
A highly gregarious species, the Swainson’s hawk forages and migrates in flocks sometimes numbering in the thousands. Its movement through Central America has been described as among “the most impressive avian gatherings in North America, since the demise of the Passenger Pigeon”. Nearly 350,000 Swainson’s hawks have been counted passing over a single point in Panama City in October and November, and up to 845,000 have been counted in a single autumn in Veracruz, Mexico.
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Sprague’s Pipit
When males are displaying during the breeding season to attract a mate, they often remain airborne for half an hour. In one case, a male Sprague’s pipit was observed displaying for 3 hours before descending to the ground! No other bird is known to perform such prolonged displays.
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Scaled Quail
Scaled quail populations can fluctuate each year in response to weather in a boom-bust cycle, mainly from a lack of rain or heavy snowfall. These weather events reduce food supplies and cause mortality, but quail population can rebound in years with ample food. They typically have short life spans but high reproductive potential.
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Gunnison Sage-grouse
Gunnison sage-grouse became officially recognized as a distinct species from greater sage-grouse in 2000, and was the first new bird species recognized in the U.S. since the 1800s! They are geographically isolated from greater sage-grouse populations, found in seven distinct populations in southwestern Colorado and southeastern Utah. There are fewer than 5,000 individual Gunnison sage-grouse, and the species is classified as Threatened under the Endangered Species Act.
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Sharp-tailed Grouse
Sharp-tailed grouse were an important source of food for Native Americans, and elements of the birds’ spring breeding display have been incorporated into the traditional dances of some Native American tribes. Some dances, such as the Grouse Dance of the Northern Tutchone people, is still practiced to this day.
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Jornada Experimental Range
Range Management Research Unit
2995 Knox St.
Las Cruces, NM 88003-0003, USA
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