Meep, Meep!

Perfect timing on the picture just now.  First time I've seen a roadrunner in my yard, but they're not uncommon around here.

Two Wile E. Coyotes behind the gate with Acme rocket skates on to chase him down!

We had a little yellow rescue hound for a few years who was our smartest and fastest dog.  When the pack would take out after a rabbit she would go wide and circle the blackberry patch where they always lost pursuit; more than once she got the bunny using that tactic.  

But her favorite thing to do was chase the roadrunners out of our yard.  Turns out they will fly when they feel the hot breath of death on their tailfeathers.  Closest she ever came to catching one, he rounded a corner at speed and met her face to face.  By the time he got turned around he had already given up on running away and was flapping madly for liftoff.  He made it *just* in time and I'm not sure she didn't tug his tailfeathers.  

Miss that dog.

No Road Runners here - but we've got the goofiest looking quail. Seriously, what use is the little black bobble on the top? These guys also hang on the ground most of the time, but are also known to fly out of danger.

Jay, yeah we've got those too.  Not so much around my yard, but they are around the more rural areas of the town.  

So cute when a family of newly hatched chicks is running across the road with their mama or papa?  Single file, just like ducklings.  :)  Gamble's quail is the variety around here.

I was looking for a picture of the chicks running, but I found an even (evil) better picture of a roadrunner with one its mouth!  Sorry!  lol

@ Joshua - The role of creatures that produce prolific numbers of offspring is to feed those higher in the food chain - so yes, that's what happens to most of the quail around here, along with the bunnies.

My goal is to try *not* to let that happen to my ducks, but there's only so much protection I can offer before it impacts negatively on quality of life, so we sometimes have to take chances!