There is something about seeing a roadrunner in a tree that makes it very clear how closely they are related to cuckoos.
Greater roadrunner (Geococcyx californianus) in a Chinese pistache tree (Pistacia chinensis), at the Sierra Vista Environmental Operations Park, Sierra Vista, Arizona.
RR.
Roadrunner hunting poses.
Greater roadrunner (Geococcyx californianus) at San Pedro House, Cochise County, Arizona.
RR.
Roadrunner (Geococcyx californianus) dodging the wily photographer in a thicket of bunch grass. At San Pedro House, Cochise County, Arizona.
Greater roadrunner (Geococcyx californianus), at the Desert Botanical Garden, in Phoenix, Arizona.
Please click photo for an enlarged view.
Roadrunners really are great. From beak to tail this bird was about two feet long (60 cm). He had wandered into the nesting territory of a mockingbird, and the smaller bird drove him up off the ground and into the shrubs. The wild animals one encounters at the botanical garden are not captive. They are genuinely wild. But it is in an environment of artificial habitat richness, especially of water resources, and in a setting where the wild denizens become somewhat accustomed to people.
Greater roadrunner (Geococcyx californianus), at the Desert Botanical Garden, in Phoenix, Arizona.
Please click photo for an enlarged view.
Roadrunners really are great. From beak to tail this bird was about two feet long (60 cm). He had wandered into the nesting territory of a mockingbird, and the smaller bird drove him up off the ground and into the shrubs. The wild animals one encounters at the botanical garden are not captive. They are genuinely wild. But it is in an environment of artificial habitat richness, especially of water resources, and in a setting where the wild denizens become somewhat accustomed to people.
Greater roadrunner (Geococcyx californianus), in the Hedgpeth Hills, Thunderbird Conservation Area, Glendale, Arizona.
During mating seasons roadrunners leave the ground for exposed perches on rocks or open branches of trees, to establish territories and improve visibility to potential mates. Or maybe they just want their pictures taken.
Greater roadrunner (Geococcyx californianus), in the Hedgpeth Hills, Thunderbird Conservation Area, Glendale, Arizona.
During mating seasons roadrunners leave the ground for exposed perches on rocks or open branches of trees, to establish territories and improve visibility to potential mates. Or maybe they just want their pictures taken.
Dithyramb 