With gossamer wings beating so fast you could hardly see them, the brilliant red dragonfly swooped in like a tiny Tinkerbell and landed on a barren tree branch.

It paused just long enough to be photographed.

I was enjoying the late summer solitude of a remote desert waterhole, hopefully awaiting the arrival of bighorn sheep. A clatter of rock caught my attention and I spotted a coyote and pup leaving another nearby pool after enjoying a drink before the day became too hot. A cluster of chattering finches darted among the trees, and a hummingbird found food in nearby wildflower blossoms. A large blacktailed jackrabbit, with huge ears that act like cooling radiators in the desert heat, nibbled on some of the lush growth around the spring.

Surrounded by miles of arid desert, it seemed impossible that there could be so much life in a seemingly lifeless place. But just the night before, my little campfire attracted the interest of a tiny desert kit fox. His dusky color that matched the desert sand made him seem ghostlike as he circled with curiosity on the outer edges of the campfire's dim glow.

The 600,000 acres of Anza-Borrego Desert State Park offer visitors a chance to view some unique and interesting wildlife. Patience, a little knowledge and just plain luck can provide you with some memorable encounters with the creatures of this arid land. Most are fascinating, majestic, cute, unique or even a bit odd. Only a few are dangerous and require caution when encountered.

Probably the premier animal of Anza-Borrego is the park's namesake, the bighorn sheep, or in Spanish, the borrego. These majestic creatures survive in a harsh environment of boulders, steep ridges, little water and sparse vegetation. They can travel swiftly and silently over unimaginable terrain, and can appear from nowhere almost instantly. They are elusive. There are residents of Borrego Springs who have lived in the desert for 20 years or more and not seen a bighorn, but at the same time, hikers have reported encounters where bighorn seemed almost to pose for pictures.

The bighorn are protected in California because of their small number, estimated at no more than 300 within Anza-Borrego. For visitors who are intent on viewing them, the best times are the hottest summer months at remote waterholes in Carrizo Gorge, Coyote Canyon or along the desert front of the San Ysidro Mountains, which climb skyward west of Borrego Springs. Some lucky visitors may spot a herd on the rocky slopes as they drive down into Borrego on County Road S-22, known as the Montezuma Grade. Hikers into more remote areas may also be lucky enough to chance upon a herd of bighorn. The encounter is something you will not forget.

These are large, powerful, noble and rare creatures. They may vanish with the wind, or may ignore you if not threatened and allow you a glimpse into their existence.

For several summers I joined park rangers and other volunteers for the annual bighorn sheep count. This midsummer activity was designed as an annual census to determine herd conditions, population trends, and the number of newborn lambs.

For three days, from dawn to sunset, we sat under self-made shade shelters within sight of a remote desert spring, west of Carrizo Gorge. In temperatures that hovered above 110 degrees we became part of these herds as they fed, watered, sometimes butted heads, fed their young or just ruminated in the warm summer sun. They are breathtaking creatures to see and a perfect namesake for this beautiful place.

There are a few denizens of the desert that you should encounter with caution. Rattlesnakes, including the sidewinder, are found here. These are venomous snakes that can inflict painful bites at the very least, and are potentially deadly.

Scorpions, which resemble tiny land lobsters, are not deadly but have a long tail equipped with a stinger that you will not soon forget. While wandering through the desert at night with a "black light" looking for minerals that glow under this ultraviolet source, I came upon a small scorpion. The light made him glow a bright fluorescent green.

You may happen upon the huge black hairy spider known as the tarantula. With long legs arching from a solid body, the tarantula is not popular with people who dislike spiders. Despite their reputation, they are not aggressive and are not deadly. It would be very difficult for a tarantula to bite a person, and the bite is no more painful than a bee sting.

The comic of the desert is surely the roadrunner. This member of the cuckoo family prefers running to flying, often staying just ahead of hikers on desert trails. Early desert residents enjoyed having the roadrunner around because they feast on rattlesnakes.

With their unkempt topknot and comic antics, they never fail to bring a smile to those who see them darting about the desert. On one recent visit to the Anza-Borrego Park visitor center, a roadrunner seemed to enjoy being the park ambassador, wandering the parking lot and greeting arriving visitors.

There is life almost everywhere in the desert, but where there is water there is more life. Tiny seeps become gathering places for birds, insects, small animals and even the larger bighorn, deer, coyote or mountain lion. The stream willow that often grows around desert seeps is also refuge for the noisemakers of the desert known as cicadas. These are insects that make a very rapid clicking noise that creates a buzz that can be extremely loud.

The other dimension of watching desert wildlife is nightfall. Many desert creatures are nocturnal, preferring the relative safety and cool of nighttime hours. The smaller rodents, snakes and lizards are often active at night, which in turn makes the predators such as coyotes, fox, bats and owls more active as well. One animal that is rarely seen by desert visitors is the ringtail cat. With a foxlike body and long, ringed tail, this is a nocturnal animal with an aversion to daylight. In all of my years in the desert, I have never seen a live ringtail.

Driving desert roads at night allows you to view some of the more than 50 species of snakes and lizards found here. The daytime heat absorbed by the asphalt roads attracts coldblooded reptiles to the warmth.

Anza-Borrego is a state park, so visitors should remember that all wildlife is protected. Observe, photograph and enjoy the animals, but do not try to capture or harm them. The park visitor center in Borrego Springs sells a number of excellent guides for those who wish to learn more about wild desert dwellers.

This is a vast and exotic place, a wonderland of strange and unusual creatures. It is untamed and wild. As one of the gems of the California State Parks System, Anza-Borrego Desert State Park is here for you to discover and enjoy some of the world's most interesting wild things.