We report year-round avian diversity and abundance at Cave Buttes, a site in the Sonoran Desert on the northern edge of the Phoenix metropolitan area. We conducted surveys on foot and by slowly driving a vehicle along little-used roads; we detected 109 species and a total of 10,078 individuals. Our results add to the documentation of the flora and fauna of Cave Buttes by providing a long-term inventory of birds over multiple years and seasons.

Cave Buttes, view to the north
Cave Buttes: this view is to the north from the eastern edge of the southeastern Union Hills, 19 December 2014. Photo by B. K. Sullivan