would like to be a roadrunner on some of these
hot summer days so that I could run really fast to the shade or the
airconditioning. Here are some interesting facts on the greater roadrunner. They
once lived only in dry open areas in the Southwest, but they now have expanded
their range eastward to open woods and grasslands and we have them here in East
Texas Greater Roadrunners are members of the cuckoo family, they have two toes
pointing forward and two facing backward, making a X footprint. Their sound is a
"coo,coo, coo, ooh, ooh, ooh."
They really can run fast and have been clocked up to 20mph. Early settlers
named these birds roadrunners because they ran ahead of the horse-drawn wagons,
catching lizards, rattlesnakes, scorpions, mice and other small animals. Male
and female roadrunners appear identical and they mate for life. Both parents
build a shallow 1 foot nest in a small tree or a clump of cacti. The female lays
three to six white or yellowish eggs. The young will be able to catch food on
their own within 3 weeks after hatching.
I hope you are lucky enough to hear the coo ,coo of the roadrunner and
then to see one or have one around your yard or garden to eat any pesky varmits.
No comments:
Post a Comment