The Greater Roadrunner

The greater roadrunner is a long-legged cuckoo from the Southwestern United States and Mexico. Its scientific name means Californian earth-cuckoo.

This bird stands about 30 cm tall. It is the largest cuckoo in the Americas. A lot of leg for a cuckoo.

The oldest known greater roadrunner fossil is very ancient.

A roadrunner can run up to twenty miles per hour. While running, it holds its head and tail parallel to the ground.

Its diet includes black widows, tarantulas, scorpions, and young rattlesnakes. An ambitious grocery list for a cuckoo.

Pairs build nests from thorny branches lined with snakeskin. Interior decorators usually charge extra for snakeskin.

Some Pueblo tribes believed the roadrunner offered protection against evil spirits. Warner Bros. paired it with a coyote since 1949.

The greater roadrunner is the state bird of New Mexico. It appeared on a 20-cent U.S. stamp in 1982.