“Beep beep!” If you grew up watching cartoons, you probably know the Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote. But did you know that this funny character is based on a real bird? It’s called the greater roadrunner, and it lives in the dry areas of northern Mexico and the southwestern United States.
On a recent trip to Las Vegas, I was eager to see one of these iconic birds. As soon as we parked at the Clark County Wetlands Park, my son George spotted one near some bushes.
The roadrunner had quick, jerky movements, large staring eyes, and a long tail. Its striped feathers and spiky crest reminded me of velociraptors from the movie Jurassic Park. Surprisingly, roadrunners belong to the cuckoo family, and their scientific name, Geococcyx, means “ground cuckoo.”
Unlike their cartoon counterpart, roadrunners can fly but prefer to run. They can reach speeds of up to 26 mph (42 km/h), making them the fastest runners among flying birds.
Later in our visit, we got an even better view of a roadrunner in action. It was battling a large lizard, grabbing it with its beak and shaking it until the lizard was finally defeated. Watching that moment was unforgettable. Even though I’d known about roadrunners for almost my whole life, this was my first time seeing one up close.
