Over Christmas my wife and I escaped the cold snap and blizzard of Nebraska to visit my folks in Albuquerque, NM. We’ve been down there a few time so we are familiar with much of the wildlife.  (I can say though I haven’t seen any tarantulas, rattlesnakes or scorpions.) Common in the area are road runners.  Now, being old enough to have enjoyed the cartoon, I thought they stood pretty tall. They don’t.  They’re small and as long as Wile E. Coyote (or my parents’ dog, Nina) is in the house, they aren’t afraid to come up to the house.  Thus this cute shot of one on a rock.

However, after seeing Nina through a window this is what happened. Now I’ve heard of animals puffing up to make themselves appear bigger and unswallowable, but I’d never heard of a bird doing it.  Pretty cool.