greater roadrunner

Greater roadrunner fossils dating from the Holocene and Pleistocene have been found in California,{{cite book|author=Larson, Leigh Marian|title=Osteology of the California road-runner recent and pleistocene|year=1930|editor=University of California Press|volume=324|location=Berkeley, California|pages=22|oclc=2951884|quote=University of California publications in zoology}}Arizona,{{cite journal|author=Howard, H|date=1962|title=A comparison of avian assemblages from individual pits at Rancho La Brea, California.|journal=Contributions in Science|volume=58|pages=1–24|doi=10.5962/p.241053|s2cid=135437539|issn=0459-8113|editor=Los Angeles County Museum|doi-access=free}} New Mexico, and Texas,{{cite journal|author=Harris, Arthur H. et Celinda R. Crews|date=1983|title=Conkling's Roadrunner: A Subspecies of the California Roadrunner?|journal=The Southwestern Naturalist|volume=28|issue=4|pages=407–412|doi=10.2307/3670819|jstor=3670819|editor=Southwestern Association of Naturalists}} in the United States,{{cite journal|author1=Mary C. Carpenter|author2=Jim I. Mead|author3=William H. Baltosser|date=2003|title=Late Pleistocene Roadrunner (Geococcyx) from Kartchner Caverns State Park, Southeastern Arizona|journal=The Southwestern Naturalist|volume=48|pages=402–410|editor=Southwestern Association of Naturalists}} and the Mexican state of Nuevo León.{{cite journal|author1=David W. Steadman|author2=Joaquin Arroyo-Cabrales|author3=Eileen Johnson|author4=A. Fabiola Guzman|date=1994|title=New Information on the Late Pleistocene Birds from San Josecito Cave, Nuevo León, Mexico|journal=The Condor|volume=96|pages=577–589|editor=Cooper Ornithological Society}} The oldest known fossil comes from a cave in New Mexico, estimated at an age of 33,500 years. In the La Brea Tar Pits, fragments from 25 greater roadrunner fossils have been found. Several other fossils are also known from Santa Barbara and Kern counties, as well as Northern Mexico.{{cite book|author=Maxon, Martha Anne|url=https://archive.org/details/realroadrunneran00maxo|title=The Real Roadrunner|publisher=University of Oklahoma Press|year=2005|isbn=0806136766|place=Norman|page=[https://archive.org/details/realroadrunneran00maxo/page/n154 124]|oclc=57414720|url-access=limited}}

Prehistoric remains indicate that until 8,000 years ago, the greater roadrunner was found in sparse forests rather than scrubby deserts; only later did it adapt to arid environments. Due to this, along with human transformation of the landscape, it has recently started to move northeast of its normal distribution. Sparse forests can be found in these parts, in an environment similar to the prehistoric North American Southwest.{{cite book|last=Howell|first=Steve N. G.|url=https://archive.org/details/guidetobirdsofme0000howe/page/350|title=A Guide to the Birds of Mexico and Northern Central America|author2=Webb, Sophie|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=1995|isbn=0-19-854012-4|page=[https://archive.org/details/guidetobirdsofme0000howe/page/350 350]}}

The greater roadrunner is about {{convert|52|-|62|cm|in|abbr=on}} long, has a {{convert|43|-|61|cm|in|abbr=on}} wingspan and weighs {{convert|221|-|538|g|oz|abbr=on}}. It stands around {{convert|25|-|30|cm|in|abbr=on|frac=4}} tall and is the largest cuckoo of the Americas.{{Cite AllAboutBirds|Greater Roadrunner}}{{cite web|url=http://www.oiseaux-birds.com/card-greater-roadrunner.html|title=Greater Roadrunner|year=2011}}{{cite web|url=http://www.statesadvisor.com/new-mexico/new-mexico-state-bird.html|title=New Mexico State Bird|year=2015}} The upper body is mostly brown with black streaks and sometimes pink spots. The neck and upper breast are white or pale brown with dark brown streaks, and the belly is white. A crest of brown feathers sticks up on the head, and a bare patch of orange and blue skin lies behind each eye;{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jJIyfDPk9scC |first=Mark W. |last=Lockwood |title=Basic Texas Birds: A Field Guide |publisher=University of Texas Press |year=2007 |isbn=978-0-292-71349-9 |page=[https://books.google.com/books?id=jJIyfDPk9scC&q=mph 168]}} the blue is replaced by white in adult males (except the blue adjacent to the eye), and the orange (to the rear) is often hidden by feathers. Males and females have identical plumage. Females are slightly smaller, on average {{convert|2|cm|in|||abbr=on|frac=8}} shorter and {{convert|30|g||||abbr=on}} lighter than males. The long stout beak is grayish brown to gray and has a hooked tip. Roadrunners have four toes on each zygodactyl foot; two face forward, and two face backward.{{Cite web |title=Greater roadrunner |url=https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/birds/facts/greater-roadrunner?loggedin=true&rnd=1689782066978 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230719161044/https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/birds/facts/greater-roadrunner?loggedin=true&rnd=1689782066978 |url-status=dead |archive-date=July 19, 2023 |access-date=July 19, 2023 |website=National Geographic| date=30 June 2021 }} The toes are brown in color and have pale gold spots.

File:The Greater Roadrunner Walking.jpg, California]]

Although capable of limited flight, it spends most of its time on the ground, and can run at speeds up to {{convert|20|mph|km/h|abbr=on}}. Cases where roadrunners have run as fast as {{convert|26|mph|km/h|abbr=on}} have been reported.{{cite book | author = Wood, Gerald | url = https://archive.org/details/guinnessbookofan00wood | title = The Guinness Book of Animal Facts and Feats | year = 1983 | publisher = Guinness Superlatives | isbn = 978-0-85112-235-9 | url-access = registration }} This is the fastest running speed clocked for a flying bird, but not nearly as fast as the {{convert|40|mph|km/h|-1|abbr=on}} of the completely flightless and much larger ostrich.{{cite web |url=http://www.speedofanimals.com/animals/roadrunner?u=m |title=SPEED OF ANIMALS, ROADRUNNER, Geococcyx californianus |access-date=2017-04-09}}

File:Roadrunner Clatter.ogg

The vocalizations of the greater roadrunner have seven distinct variants. The most frequent call is a slow and descending sequence of about six low, "cooing" noises, emitted by the male and which is heard at {{convert|820|ft|meters|-1}}.{{cite web|title=Recordings|url=https://xeno-canto.org/species/Geococcyx-californianus|access-date=20 September 2022}} This call is usually made early in the morning, from a high perch such as a fence post, dead tree or cactus. Females give off a number of up to twenty-two short, low-frequency shrills, resembling coyote squeals, which can be heard {{convert|1,000|ft|m|-2}} away. Both male and female roadrunners emit a series of five or six chatters accompanied by groaning, loud enough to be heard {{convert|700|ft|m|-2}} away. This sound is the roadrunner's most common vocalization during the incubation period and the rearing of chicks.{{sfn|Whitson|1971|p=141}}

The greater roadrunner is found in the Aridoamerica ecoregion, within the southwestern United States and northern Mexico. It can be seen regularly in the US states of California, Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, Nevada, Oklahoma, Utah and a tiny bit of Colorado, and less frequently in Kansas, Louisiana, Arkansas, and Missouri, as well as the Mexican states of Baja California, Baja California Sur, Sonora, Sinaloa, Chihuahua, Durango, Jalisco, Coahuila, Zacatecas, Aguascalientes, Guanajuato, Michoacán, Querétaro, México, Puebla, Nuevo León, Tamaulipas, and San Luis Potosí.{{cite book | last = Howell | first = Steve N. G. | author2 = Webb, Sophie | title = A Guide to the Birds of Mexico and Northern Central America | publisher = Oxford University Press | page = [https://archive.org/details/guidetobirdsofme0000howe/page/350 350] | year = 1995 | isbn = 0-19-854012-4 | url = https://archive.org/details/guidetobirdsofme0000howe/page/350 }} The species is not migratory.

The greater roadrunner can be found from {{convert|200|ft|m|abbr=on}} below sea level to {{convert|7500|ft|m|abbr=on}}, but rarely above {{convert|9800|ft|m|abbr=on}}. It occupies arid and semiarid scrubland, with scattered vegetation (typically less than 50% cover) with a height that doesn't exceed {{convert|9|ft|10|in|m|abbr=on}}.

Until a mate is found, the greater roadrunner typically lives a solitary life.{{Cite web |date=August 21, 2020 |title=Greater Roadrunner |url=https://www.nps.gov/whsa/learn/nature/roadrunner.htm |access-date=July 19, 2023 |website=National Park Service}} The greater roadrunner is monogamous, forming long-term pair bonds. Breeding season begins from mid-March to early September.{{sfn|Whitson|1971|p={{pn|date=February 2024}}}} Courtship behaviors between greater roadrunners are a lengthy process including a combination of chasing, tail wagging, play-fighting, and acoustic signals. Once the chasing stage has passed, male greater roadrunners will present nesting materials or food to the females.{{sfn|Whitson|1971|p={{pn|date=February 2024}}}}

Often males will offer food to females during the act of copulation. A unique feature of the greater roadrunner is that mated couples will continue their copulation rituals long after the need for egg fertilization. This factor is believed to contribute to the couple's pair bond maintenance.{{sfn|Whitson|1971|p={{pn|date=February 2024}}}} Greater roadrunner couples defend a territory of about {{cvt|7500|to|8600|ft2}} in size.{{cite journal|last=Calder|first=W. A.|year=1968 |title=The Diurnal Activity of the Roadrunner, Geococcyx californianus|journal=The Condor|publisher=Oxford University Press (OUP)|volume=70|issue=1|pages=84–85|doi=10.2307/1366511|jstor=1366511|s2cid=34032894}}{{cite journal|last1=Montalvo|first1=Andrea E.|last2=Ransom|first2=Dean|last3=Lopez|first3=Roel R.|year=2014|title=Greater Roadrunner (Geococcyx californianus) Home Range and Habitat Selection in West Texas|url=https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/wnan/vol74/iss2/5|journal=Western North American Naturalist|volume=74|issue=2|pages=201–207|doi=10.3398/064.074.0205|issn=1527-0904|s2cid=86351432}} The male is more territorial, calling out to warn competitors, and does not hesitate to physically push the intruders out of his territory. Some couples defend the same territory all year long.

Both birds build the nest, with the male collecting the material and the female constructing the nest. The nests are compact platforms of thorny branches lined with grasses, feathers, snakeskin, roots, and other fine material. They are built low in a cactus, bush, or man-made structure; 3–10 feet above ground. Greater roadrunners lay three to six eggs, which hatch in 20 days. The chicks fledge in another 18 days. Pairs may occasionally rear a second brood when there is an abundance of food in rainy summers. A young fledge will typically remain with its parents until it is at least 50 days old.{{sfn|Whitson|1971|p={{pn|date=February 2024}}}}

Similarly to some other cuckoos, greater roadrunners occasionally lay their eggs in the nests of other birds, such as the common raven{{cite journal|last=Pemberton|first=J. R.|date=1925-01-01|title=Parasitism in the Road-runner|journal=The Condor|volume=27|issue=1|pages=35–38|doi=10.2307/1362970|issn=0010-5422|jstor=1362970}} and northern mockingbird.{{cite journal|last1=Aragón|last2=Møller|last3=Soler|last4=Soler|year=1999|title=Molecular phylogeny of cuckoos supports a polyphyletic origin of brood parasitism|journal=Journal of Evolutionary Biology|publisher=Wiley|volume=12|issue=3|pages=495–506|doi=10.1046/j.1420-9101.1999.00052.x|issn=1010-061X|doi-access=free|s2cid=16923328}}

The primary predators of this species include ground predators (coyotes, bobcats, lynxes and cougars) and aerial predators (Cooper's hawks and red-tailed hawks).{{Cite journal |last1=Montalvo |first1=Andrea E. |last2=Ransom |first2=Dean |last3=Lopez |first3=Roel R. |date=2014 |title=Modeling Greater Roadrunners' (Geococcyx californianus) Habitat Use in West Texas |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/26455981 |journal=The Wilson Journal of Ornithology |volume=126 |issue=2 |pages=359–366 |doi=10.1676/13-100.1 |jstor=26455981 |issn=1559-4491}}

File:Greater Roadrunner imported from iNaturalist photo 8844788 on 3 December 2024 (cropped).jpg]]

The greater roadrunner is omnivorous and uses its speed to outrun and catch prey. It feeds mainly on small animals, such as insects, spiders (including black widows and tarantulas), centipedes,{{Cite web|url=https://animaldiversity.org/accounts/Geococcyx_californianus/|title = Geococcyx californianus (Greater roadrunner)| website=Animal Diversity Web }} scorpions, mice, small birds (including hummingbirds), lizards and young rattlesnakes, and some plants. Some instances of the greater roadrunner feeding on the dead carcasses of larger mammals (including bats, ground squirrels, and one juvenile desert cottontail){{Cite journal |last1=Brym |first1=Matthew Z. |last2=Henry |first2=Cassandra |last3=Kendall |first3=Ronald J. |date=2018 |title=Greater Roadrunner (geococcyx Californianus) Predation on Juvenile Quail in the Rolling Plains Ecoregion of Texas |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/26861535 |journal=The Southwestern Naturalist |volume=63 |issue=3 |pages=204–206 |doi=10.1894/0038-4909-63-3-204 |jstor=26861535 |issn=0038-4909}} have been observed. They are opportunistic and are known to feed on eggs and young of other birds{{Cite journal |last1=Brym |first1=Matthew Z. |last2=Henry |first2=Cassandra |last3=Kendall |first3=Ronald J. |date=2018 |title=Greater Roadrunner (geococcyx Californianus) Predation on Juvenile Quail in the Rolling Plains Ecoregion of Texas |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/26861535 |journal=The Southwestern Naturalist |volume=63 |issue=3 |pages=204–206 |doi=10.1894/0038-4909-63-3-204 |jstor=26861535 |issn=0038-4909}} as well as carrion. Early pioneer accounts report that when the roadrunner "sees a rattlesnake, it will gather pieces of cactus and put them around the snake, in such manner that escape is impossible".Hayes, (Judge) Benjamin (1929). P. 132. "Pioneer Notes From the Diaries of Judge Benjamin Hayes 1849-1875." McBride Printing Company, Los Angeles, California.

File:Roadrunnersun.jpg

Because of the greater roadrunner's diurnal nature and arid habitat, it has various biological and behavioral adaptations, known as thermoregulation, to reduce dehydration and overheating. During the hot season, it is active mostly from sunrise to mid-morning, and late afternoon to evening. It rests in the shade during the hottest part of the day.{{cite journal |language = en |author = Calder, WA |title = The Diurnal Activity of the Roadrunner, Geococcyx californianus |journal = The Condor |date = 1967 |volume= 70 |issue = 1 |pages = 84–85 |doi = 10.2307/1366511 |jstor = 1366511 |editor = Cooper Ornithological Society}} Body water may be retained via liquid reabsorption, by the mucous membranes in the cloaca, rectum and caecum. The roadrunner's nasal glands eliminate excess body salts.{{cite journal|language = en |author1=RD Ohmart |author2=TE Chapman |author3=LZ McFarland |title = Water Turnover in Roadrunners under Different Environmental Conditions |journal = The Auk |date = 1970 |volume= 87 |pages = 787–793 |editor = University of California Press on behalf of the American Ornithologists Union}}{{cite journal |language = en |author1=RD Ohmart |author2=TE Chapman |author3=LZ McFarland |title = Physiological and ecological observations concerning the salt-secreting nasal glands of the Roadrunner |journal = Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology |date = 1972 |volume= 43A |pages = 311–316 |editor = Pergamon Press}}

The greater roadrunner reduces excess heat by the formation of water vapor, released by breathing or through the skin.{{cite journal |author1=Robert C. Lasiewski |author2=Marvin H. Bernstein |author3=Robert D. Ohmart |title = Cutaneous Water Loss in the Roadrunner and Poor-Will |language = en |journal= The Condor |date = 1968 |volume= 73 |pages = 470–472 |editor = Cooper Ornithological Society}} It sometimes pants in heavy heat to accelerate this action.{{cite journal |author = Ohmart, Robert D. |title = Comments on the Breeding Adaptations of the Roadrunner |journal = The Condor |date = 1973 |volume= 75 |pages = 140–149 |editor = Cooper Ornithological Society}} At night, it reduces its energy expenditure by more than 30 percent, lowering its body temperature from {{convert|104 to 93|F|C}}.{{cite journal |author = Vehrencamp, Sandra L. |title = Body Temperatures of Incubating versus Non-Incubating Roadrunners |journal=The Condor |date = 1982 |volume= 84 |pages = 203–207 |editor = Cooper Ornithological Society}} In the morning, it accelerates heat recovery by sunbathing. In winter, it takes refuge in dense vegetation or among rocks to shelter from cold winds.

The roadrunner frequently sunbathes for warmth. It turns perpendicular to the ground with its back turned towards the sun. Wings apart, the roadrunner ruffles the black feathers on its back and head, exposing its black skin, allowing both skin and feathers to absorb the heat of the sun's rays.{{cite journal|author = Ohmart, Robert D. and Robert C. Lasiewski |title = Roadrunners: Energy Conservation by Hypothermia and Absorption of Sunlight |journal=Science |language = en |date = 1971 |volume= 172 |issue = 3978 |pages = 67–69 |editor = American Association for the Advancement of Science|doi = 10.1126/science.172.3978.67 |pmid = 5546286 |bibcode = 1971Sci...172...67O |s2cid = 6056307 }} Early in the morning, it can stay in this posture for two or three hours.{{cite journal|last=Ohmart|first=R. D.|year=1989|title=A timid desert creature that appears to be half bird, half reptile|journal=Natural History, American Museum of Natural History|volume=89|pages=34–40|issn=0028-0712}} In winter, when the temperatures are around {{convert|68|F|C}}, roadrunners may warm themselves in the sun several times during the day for more than half an hour at a time.

File:Roadrunner running.jpg

The greater roadrunner can maintain a speed of {{convert|18 - 20|mph|km/h|abbr=on}} over long distances.{{cite journal|author=pubmeddev|last2=JL|first2=Kavanau|last3=J|first3=Ramos|date=2019-09-02|title=Roadrunners: activity of captive individuals. - PubMed|journal=Science|volume=169|issue=3947|pages=780–2|doi=10.1126/science.169.3947.780|pmid=5432575|s2cid=45697628}} While running, it places its head and tail parallel to the ground and uses its tail as a rudder to help change its direction. It prefers to run in open areas, such as roads, packed trails and dry riverbeds rather than dense vegetation.

The roadrunner less often engages in flight. It hovers from a perch, such as a tree or a human construction. More rarely, it flies short distances of {{cvt|4|or|5|m}} between potential roosts.

Some Pueblo Native American tribes, including the Hopi, believed the roadrunner provided protection against evil spirits. In Mexico, some said it brought babies, as the white stork was said to in Europe. Some Anglo frontier people believed roadrunners led lost people to trails.

Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner are the two main characters and protagonists of a long-running (since 1949) Warner Bros. animated series.{{cite book|last1=Lenburg|first1=Jeff|url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780816038312/page/128/mode/2up|title=The Encyclopedia of Animated Cartoons|date=1999|publisher=Checkmark Books|isbn=0-8160-3831-7|pages=128–129|access-date=6 June 2020}}

The greater roadrunner is the state bird of New Mexico and, as such, appeared in a 1982 sheet of 20-cent United States stamps showing 50 state birds and flowers.{{cite web|title=1982 USA Stamps |url=https://www.pinterest.com/pin/289426713534064995/}}

It is also the mascot of numerous high schools and colleges in the United States, including California State University, Bakersfield and the University of Texas at San Antonio.{{cite web|date=August 29, 2017|title=Rowdy History|url=https://gorunners.com/sports/2017/8/29/mascot-history.aspx|access-date=July 15, 2020|website=GoRunners.com}}{{cite web|title=WAC to Add Denver, UTSA and Texas State|url=http://www.wacsports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=10100&ATCLID=205028332|access-date=November 11, 2010|publisher=Western Athletic Conference}} The College of DuPage mascot takes the bird's alternate name, Chapparal, inspired by students driving between various temporary classroom locations before the main campus was fully constructed. The roadrunner is also the mascot of the Tucson Roadrunners, a professional hockey team in Tucson, Arizona.{{cite web|date=April 19, 2016|title=Coyotes Sign Agreement to Purchase Springfield Falcons AHL Franchise|url=http://coyotes.nhl.com/club/news.htm?id=879403|access-date=May 18, 2016|publisher=Arizona Coyotes}}

File:Greater Roadrunner Collage.jpg

{{Reflist|32em}}

• {{cite thesis |last1=Whitson |first1=Martha Anne |date=1971 |title=Field and laboratory investigations of the ethology of courtship and copulation in the greater roadrunner (Geococcyx californianus-Aves, Cuculidae) |id={{OCLC|26964120|26964120}} {{ProQuest|302509125}} |hdl=11244/3240 |hdl-access=free }}

{{cite journal|last1=Hoese|first1=William|last2=Anticona|first2=Steve|last3=Olmos|first3=Erik|last4=Parent|first4=John|last5=Rutti|first5=Donald|last6=Velasco|first6=Beth|title=Greater Roadrunner (Geococcyx californianus) Kills Juvenile Desert Cottontail (Sylvilagus audubonii)|journal=Southwestern Naturalist|date=March 2013|volume=58|issue=1|pages=124–126|doi=10.1894/0038-4909-58.1.124|s2cid=86206451}}

Montalvo, A. E., Ransom, D., & Lopez, R. R. (2014). Modeling Greater Roadrunners’ (Geococcyx californianus) Habitat Use in West Texas. The Wilson Journal of Ornithology, 126(2), 359–366. http://www.jstor.org/stable/26455981

{{Commons category|Geococcyx californianus|Greater roadrunner}}

{{Wikispecies|Geococcyx californianus}}

• [http://animaldiversity.ummz.umich.edu/site/accounts/information/Geococcyx_californianus.html Greater Roadrunner - Geococyx californianus] at Animal Diversity Web
• [http://www.desertusa.com/road.html The Roadrunner] at DesertUSA.com
• [https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Greater_Roadrunner/ Greater Roadrunner Species Account] – Cornell Lab of Ornithology
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20140202144515/http://enature.com/fieldguides/detail.asp?allSpecies=y&searchText=roadrunner&curGroupID=1&lgfromWhere=&curPageNum=5 Greater Roadrunner FieldGuide] at eNature.com
• [http://www.nhptv.org/natureworks/greaterroadrunner.htm Greater Roadrunner] at NatureWorks
• {{InternetBirdCollection|greater-roadrunner-geococcyx-californianus|Greater roadrunner}}
• {{VIREO|Greater+Roadrunner|Greater roadrunner}}

{{Taxonbar|from=Q634804}}

greater roadrunner

Category:Native birds of the Western United States

Category:Native birds of the Southwestern United States

Category:Native birds of the Plains-Midwest (United States)

Category:Birds of the United States

Category:Fauna of the Chihuahuan Desert

Category:Fauna of the Mojave Desert

Category:Fauna of the Colorado Desert

Category:Fauna of the Sonoran Desert

Category:Fauna of the California chaparral and woodlands

greater roadrunner

Category:Symbols of New Mexico

Category:Taxa named by René Lesson