Croplands
A habitat that is often overlooked when discussing the desert is that of croplands and other agricultural areas. Yet they have an important role in desert ecosystems. In areas where people are growing crops to feed animals or themselves, water - the important key to life in the desert - is used to irrigate. Thus croplands provide two necessary items in the lives of resident plants and animals - water and food.
Many animals have learned to use croplands to their advantage. Gray foxes live in pecan orchards, because the trees provide them with a means of escaping coyotes. These foxes can climb trees, and the coyotes can't. Many toads and frogs live in the irrigation ditches and canals that are built to water the crops. Waterfowl feed in fields of grain and legumes. Coyotes and mule deer eat chili because it is a rich source of protein, usually better than what they can find in the wild.
The use of croplands by wildlife also has its problems, both for mankind and for the animals. Sometimes losses incurred from wildlife eating plants can ruin a farmer's harvest. And some animals, such as skunks and Gambel's quail, may den or nest in alfalfa fields only to lose their nests, eggs, babies, and possibly their lives when the alfalfa is mowed and baled. Also, the damming of the rivers for irrigation, and the seasonal regulation of the water means that fish and crustaceans getting into the irrigation ditches during watering seasons will die when the water flow is shut off. So although croplands have some elements of native desert habitats, they really are separate regions with their own advantages and problems for the species within.