If you are posting a photo of a bird you want identified, and your post text or title does not say where the bird was located, and what time of year, reply here with that information.
Location and time of year are both very important in identifying birds.
“Arizona roadrunner” is not a real bird; we have greater roadrunners like this one in (far southwestern) Missouri. Also a pretty vocal birds, like most other cuckoo species.
“Anxious espresso” is a very good description of house wren energy, though!
I even took a screen shot and asked Merlin using Arizona as location and it gave me both Greater Road runner and Cactus Wren as possibilities.
As an aside, I'm from the Northeast and visited my BIL once in Arizona and saw a roadroadrunner, having never seen one because of course we don't have them our way. . TIL there are more then one type 😊
Edit: now that I'm awake properly, I'm very much standing by roadrunner. This bird is clearly very large, bill is wrong for cactus wren, tail and wing markings wrong for cactus wren, extremely prominent rictal bristles, etc. This is a roadrunner.
Even without the size info, pretty much all the visible field marks here point towards GRRO over cactus wren:
This bird has no white eyebrow. Cactua wrens have a pretty prominnent white eyebrow
Though both have streaked backs, the pattern here is wrong for cactus wren
Cactus wrens underparts with heavy black spots. This bird has unspotted white underparts
Cactus wrens also have pretty barred tails, which this bird does not
I cant tell if there are markings on the tail from that photograph, I'm also not American, but that definitely looks like a wren of some sort and NOT a great roadrunner, to my eyes, too. ♡
Your eyes are wrong. The tail is clearly unmarked. The belly is white instead of buffy, there is no bold white eyebrow, the bill is proportionally more chunky. I have plenty of experience with both species. This is a Greater Roadrunner.
I can see a bit of similarity between OPs pic and the bottom left shot but I also see similarities between the Eurasian wren and the OPs pic.
Like I said, I'm not American. We don't have Greater Roadrunners here, so I only know them through photographs. To my not American eyes, it looks like a member of the wren family in the OP pic. : )
It is a Greater Roadrunner but if there's a specific thrasher you think it could be, I could discuss the ID points that favor roadrunner over the thrasher.
My brother gets pics from a trail cam on his property in the desert. He gets roadrunners rather frequently. I'm no expert but agree it's likely a roadrunner. Meep meep!
For definitive settlement of ID, I’d recommend r/whatsthisbird . There are people on there who ID birds for a living.
That said, how is this a cactus wren and not a greater roadrunner? I’ve lived in AZ/SoCal and seen dozens of both species; nothing about this bird says cactus wren. Maybe folks are fixating on the tail cocked up and thinking the light is smaller than it is? Points for greater roadrunner/against cactus wren.
OP mentions the bird was large here. Size is usually a bad ID tool, but OP was close to the bird. Cactus wrens are large for a wren, but not a large bird in general.
No pale supercillium (eyebrow). Present in most wren species at all ages; cactus wren is no exception.
Tail is far too long for any wren species I know of and clearly unmarked. Cactus wrens have striping on the tail that would clearly show up on the base of the tail of this photo.
Lack of spotting and buffy coloration on the flanks. The buffy color can be faint on some individuals (doesn’t seem age-dependent), but the spotting is always there. I see cool white, unmarked flanks indicative of greater roadrunner.
Pale iris, which is typical of greater roadrunner. Juvenile cactus wrens have a paler iris than adults photo here, but not nearly as pale as a greater roadrunner, especially in indirect lighting.
Oooh. So we got a "is it, or isn't it?" going on here.
Hmm. Bird is very 'borbed' (in a body compacted position) so looks smaller as result. Also RRs don't all start out 2 ft large anyway. No stripe markings on the head. Beak shape and tail length....
I'm gonna stick with (young) Roadrunner. but I could be wrong.
(I already got the song wrong: It is Meep! not Beep!)
As someone who lives in the southwest and has spent significant time photographing both species, that is a roadrunner in a scrunched up pose. Not a cactus wren.
Nope, absolutely a road runner. The light eye, tail to body length ratio, spotless underparts, and lack of a bold supercilium streak all say road runner.
I took the Wikipedia info box images for both the greater roadrunner and the cactus wren. I have spent significant time watching both species and I live in the southwest. This is a roadrunner.
I’m not sure what it is but it would have to be a juvenile and since they’re flightless birds I don’t know how it would get up there. I’ll look some more.🤷🏼♀️
There's a roadrunner on my property who like to use my feeders and the adjacent tree as hunting grounds. The poor bushtits he snacks on would love it if he was flightless 😭
I think that light is significantly bigger than people are imagining. Look at the sign. If this were a wren it would be way smaller (no bigger than that sign)
My vote is for roadrunner even though it looks weird.
Did it say meep meep and drop an anvil on a coyote? (I’m sure I will get in trouble for this but I live in the UK and I couldn’t resist-besides…it’s Christmas 🎄)
Going against the grain here, but it looks like a road runner , the iris looks much lighter, it lacks the strong white eyebrow, the tail is longer in proportion as well
Definitely a roadrunner. But I can see how people are confused given the seemingly unusual pose. Roadrunners are known to roost like this against walls! Example linked here. Very cool find, OP. For folks suggesting a wren species, look at the heft of the bill and the length of the tail in addition to plumage differences. Even a Cactus Wren, which has a proportionally longer tail than many wren species, could not possibly have those proportions. (Part of the confusion may also come from the fact that the face is partially obscured.) The gallery of Cactus Wren photos here may be helpful. Regardless, both are very cool desert species and do have some similarities in plumage and even demeanor. Arizona birds are the best!
It is a Greater Roadrunner. I agree in it being a juvenile. Born and raised in Arizona ( still here) and these are my common yard bird. Tail is too long for a Cactus Wren and the bill is thicker and longer.
What is the width of the light fixture? I’m quite certain this is a roadrunner. The tail is much too long in proportion to be a wren and a cactus wren has a very distinctive eye line.
Completely agree, have my upvote to cancel out someone else’s downvote. Some people are so set on it being a cactus wren and downvoting anyone who says otherwise. This is 100% a roadrunner.
I have a longstanding lineage of house wrens that nest in my shed, for the nearly 20 years I’ve owned my house. I have seen wrens very up close every year. That’s a wren.
This bird doesn't have wren physical characteristics at all, the tail and bill are way too long, the colors are off, and the bird itself is far larger than wrens. This is a roadrunner
if this were a house wren as you’re suggesting, that sign would be barely large enough to be legible. Also the beak is too long for a northern house wren. I can see the confusion with a cactus wren, though this specimen doesn’t have the distinctive wren eyebrow. Seems this easily could be a juvenile greater roadrunner
• size. the bird is very small and lightweight. roadrunners are turkey-adjacent.
• tail angle. wrens do that dramatic vertical tail flip. roadrunners carry theirs long and horizontal.
• beak. short, slightly curved, insect-snatching beak. a roadrunner’s beak is much longer thicker and heavier built. it’s designed for catching and killing larger prey like lizards snakes and rodents rather than insects.
• location choice. wrens love little perches. roadrunners are ground-dwelling birds that spend most of their time running on open pavement, desert flats, and roads. they are active predators rather than perch-sitting songbirds.
What do you mean by “Turkey-adjacent”? They’re nowhere near as big as turkeys and not related to turkeys. They’re in the cuckoo family. This bird is absolutely a roadrunner.
I think people are underestimating the size of this bird by a lot, based on the size of the sign by the light, this bird is totally a reasonable sie for a GRRO
juvenile roadrunner - look at the eyes and the hairs around the beak. also the plumage matches a roadrunner more than a cactus wren, which would have a distinctive white line along the brow
for clarification OP, I would measure the wall lamp and edit the post to include that in the description
I also thought cactus wren at first! but the beak hairs and someone else’s comment about it maybe being a juvenile made me reconsider. also look at the eye of the op bird vs a wren
there are a lot of extra details on the wren’s plumage that don’t match up. tail is also closer to a RR, although the beaks are a lot more similar than I realized!
Wrens are tiny and LOUD! Like, tiny flying megaphones loud. I'm not sure about the relative size of the lamp thing(?), so how big is the thing that the bird is sitting on? Roadrunners are much bigger than wrens, and are way quieter (Wrens tend to outloud nearly everyone else when it comes to pure loudness in general).
That's a greater roadrunner, clear as day. People saying wren have never seen a roadrunner apparently. If it were a wren, the text on that sign that people are meant to read would be like 2 pt font.
This. I used to have one living in my neighborhood that would visit my backyard. And I’m a wildlife biologist that specializes in desert species and would see these guys all the time. This is a greater roadrunner. No doubt.
Being from Southern NH, I have only seen one roadrunner on a family visit at the condo complex we were at in Scottsdale so I know nothing about them other then he was fast 😂
I know from seeing wrens around here they normally hide in all kinds of places around homes. Do Road runners also do the same? I always pictured them as more ground animals knowing nothing about them.
newp. only cuckoo in arizona is the yellow billed, afaik, which is a more colorful bird, that looks nothing like that pic. not remotely close. looks to be a roadrunner.
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eta- bird names
“Arizona roadrunner” is not a real bird; we have greater roadrunners like this one in (far southwestern) Missouri. Also a pretty vocal birds, like most other cuckoo species.
“Anxious espresso” is a very good description of house wren energy, though!
yeah I should’ve said GRR
The two birds being discussed are cactus wren and greater roadrunner. Not house wren, and there is no Arizona roadrunner.
I even took a screen shot and asked Merlin using Arizona as location and it gave me both Greater Road runner and Cactus Wren as possibilities.
As an aside, I'm from the Northeast and visited my BIL once in Arizona and saw a roadroadrunner, having never seen one because of course we don't have them our way. . TIL there are more then one type 😊
Great roadrunner :)
Edit: now that I'm awake properly, I'm very much standing by roadrunner. This bird is clearly very large, bill is wrong for cactus wren, tail and wing markings wrong for cactus wren, extremely prominent rictal bristles, etc. This is a roadrunner.
Oh thank you !!!
Op, how large is that light? That’s the info that would really settle if it a cactus wren or a RR.
10 inches across
Then I’d say roadrunner for sure. Cactus wren would be about 1/2 that size. Still a pretty good sized bird to be a wren.
Even without the size info, pretty much all the visible field marks here point towards GRRO over cactus wren: This bird has no white eyebrow. Cactua wrens have a pretty prominnent white eyebrow Though both have streaked backs, the pattern here is wrong for cactus wren Cactus wrens underparts with heavy black spots. This bird has unspotted white underparts Cactus wrens also have pretty barred tails, which this bird does not
This is 1000% a greater roadrunner 😁
A roadrunner is almost two feet long. That Cactus Wren is a third or less of the size of a roadrunner.
Ornithology nerd and raptor specialist here. That is absolutely not a wren.
Now that I'm awake--yeah, this is still a roadrunner. Different markings from cactus wren, I was on it the first time.
Way smaller then that
Definitely a Wren
Definitely not lol
You were right to begin with. The completely solid-colored tail should immediately remove any wren from consideration.
Wild how many people in here are adamant about Cactus Wren...
I cant tell if there are markings on the tail from that photograph, I'm also not American, but that definitely looks like a wren of some sort and NOT a great roadrunner, to my eyes, too. ♡
Your eyes are wrong. The tail is clearly unmarked. The belly is white instead of buffy, there is no bold white eyebrow, the bill is proportionally more chunky. I have plenty of experience with both species. This is a Greater Roadrunner.
All of these photos are mine.
https://preview.redd.it/l5tght2j7k9g1.png?width=4096&format=png&auto=webp&s=b971d9576c2754f46ff1e478b80fee3872e96806
Great photos and ID. Definitely a roadrunner!
Great photos! Thank you.
I can see a bit of similarity between OPs pic and the bottom left shot but I also see similarities between the Eurasian wren and the OPs pic.
Like I said, I'm not American. We don't have Greater Roadrunners here, so I only know them through photographs. To my not American eyes, it looks like a member of the wren family in the OP pic. : )
I see these birds all the time. It is a roadrunner without any doubt.
Yep, I’ve been downvoted so much by those who are sure it’s a cactus wren. They are not 10” long!
Is it possibly a type of thrasher?
It is a Greater Roadrunner but if there's a specific thrasher you think it could be, I could discuss the ID points that favor roadrunner over the thrasher.
My brother gets pics from a trail cam on his property in the desert. He gets roadrunners rather frequently. I'm no expert but agree it's likely a roadrunner. Meep meep!
Looks like a juvenile roadrunner posing in a wren like position.
Never seen one posed like that! So cool.
Yeah same !
For definitive settlement of ID, I’d recommend r/whatsthisbird . There are people on there who ID birds for a living.
That said, how is this a cactus wren and not a greater roadrunner? I’ve lived in AZ/SoCal and seen dozens of both species; nothing about this bird says cactus wren. Maybe folks are fixating on the tail cocked up and thinking the light is smaller than it is? Points for greater roadrunner/against cactus wren.
everyone on there seems to agree it is Greater Roadrunner. I feel vindicated. Boo to all of you that have downvoted my other comments
Have my (desert biologist) upvote! It’s definitely a greater roadrunner!!
Thank you. The wren contingent is big on the downvotes with me too. I rehabbed a cactus wren and this is a roadrunner!
Beep-Beep!!
Meep meep
That is the correct translation according to the Acme Guide to Road Runners
Oooh. So we got a "is it, or isn't it?" going on here.
Hmm. Bird is very 'borbed' (in a body compacted position) so looks smaller as result. Also RRs don't all start out 2 ft large anyway. No stripe markings on the head. Beak shape and tail length....
I'm gonna stick with (young) Roadrunner. but I could be wrong.
(I already got the song wrong: It is Meep! not Beep!)
You are not wrong. Definitely a roadrunner.
Juvenile Greater Roadrunner.
That’s a Cactus Wren.
As someone who lives in the southwest and has spent significant time photographing both species, that is a roadrunner in a scrunched up pose. Not a cactus wren.
Nope, absolutely a road runner. The light eye, tail to body length ratio, spotless underparts, and lack of a bold supercilium streak all say road runner.
not a cactus wren completely wrong beak and proportions
Nice shots OP
Thank you
I took the Wikipedia info box images for both the greater roadrunner and the cactus wren. I have spent significant time watching both species and I live in the southwest. This is a roadrunner.
Meep meep everyone.
this was the side of a Dollar General stop flexing
🤣🤣🤣
👍
Oh, that's Kieth.
MEEP MEEP!
THAT IS A ROADRUNNER
The entire comments section on the actual bird ID subreddit disagrees with you
Edit: you sneaky edited the post! When I replied this comment said “not a roadrunner”.
Merlin too and I used this photo...?
r/birds is so full of confidently incorrect people it's hilarious
My Merlin ID correctly identified it as a greater roadrunner.
That’s what I said, but Merlin put up 5 other birds with the Roadrunner the highest odds of being correct.
In the thread above you said the bird ID sub confirmed it is a roadrunner. You are contradicting yourself.
They edited the post. It originally said “not”. Check the edit timestamp.
Okay maybe it is as I don’t have any idea what else it could be?!?!
so? please educate us
It’s either a house wren or a rock wren- it looks nothing like a roadrunner.
You are 100% incorrect. It’s a roadrunner.
we’ve all been over this but welcome to the party
I believe it to be a cactus wren given size and location!!
That light fixture is 10” across, according to OP. It is in no way a cactus (or any other) wren.
🤔🤔🤔
I’m not sure what it is but it would have to be a juvenile and since they’re flightless birds I don’t know how it would get up there. I’ll look some more.🤷🏼♀️
Roadrunners are not flightless. I've seen one perched atop a telephone pole.
There's a roadrunner on my property who like to use my feeders and the adjacent tree as hunting grounds. The poor bushtits he snacks on would love it if he was flightless 😭
The only birds that don't fear our roadrunner are the hawks.
I have seen this baby's mama snatch a falcon going after a cat.
IDK why, but the hawks will try to take pit shots. I like to think of it as when the air force buzzes a naval vessel lol
One jumped onto my house today. So it could get onto my car to jump to the top of the neighbor's tree in 1 jump (Appx 12').
If they're flightless, IDK what kind of cricket technology they have hiding or where 👀 😨
Roadrunners are not flightless. Where did you hear that?
I think that light is significantly bigger than people are imagining. Look at the sign. If this were a wren it would be way smaller (no bigger than that sign)
My vote is for roadrunner even though it looks weird.
Cactus wren?
Looks more like a cactus wren to me too 🤷♂️
Did it say meep meep and drop an anvil on a coyote? (I’m sure I will get in trouble for this but I live in the UK and I couldn’t resist-besides…it’s Christmas 🎄)
Road runner
Roadrunner. Juvenile most likely.
I live in AZ, & that's a road runner.
Juvenile Greater Roadrunner! (I'm a birder.)
Going against the grain here, but it looks like a road runner , the iris looks much lighter, it lacks the strong white eyebrow, the tail is longer in proportion as well
Plus you can see the general shape of the crest
yeah I agree, I think it’s a juvenile. idk why people are throwing a tantrum about a difficult ID lol
Definitely a roadrunner. But I can see how people are confused given the seemingly unusual pose. Roadrunners are known to roost like this against walls! Example linked here. Very cool find, OP. For folks suggesting a wren species, look at the heft of the bill and the length of the tail in addition to plumage differences. Even a Cactus Wren, which has a proportionally longer tail than many wren species, could not possibly have those proportions. (Part of the confusion may also come from the fact that the face is partially obscured.) The gallery of Cactus Wren photos here may be helpful. Regardless, both are very cool desert species and do have some similarities in plumage and even demeanor. Arizona birds are the best!
It is a Greater Roadrunner. I agree in it being a juvenile. Born and raised in Arizona ( still here) and these are my common yard bird. Tail is too long for a Cactus Wren and the bill is thicker and longer.
It looks like a Cactus wren to me….but I’m no expert.
Meep Meep!!
Edit; it’s a roadrunner not a cactus wren
What is the width of the light fixture? I’m quite certain this is a roadrunner. The tail is much too long in proportion to be a wren and a cactus wren has a very distinctive eye line.
Here I was ready to say wren! Then I read the caption and saw Arizona. Still a cutie!
You would have been right to say wren. Cactus wrens are about eight inches long on average - they are very large for a wren.
No, they would not have been right. Confirmed RR by the bird ID sub
Completely agree, have my upvote to cancel out someone else’s downvote. Some people are so set on it being a cactus wren and downvoting anyone who says otherwise. This is 100% a roadrunner.
Oh wow, so is this a cactus wren or roadrunner? I'm form NY, so no cactus or roadrunners unfortunately!
It's a juvenile roadrunner posing in a wren like position.
I have a longstanding lineage of house wrens that nest in my shed, for the nearly 20 years I’ve owned my house. I have seen wrens very up close every year. That’s a wren.
This bird doesn't have wren physical characteristics at all, the tail and bill are way too long, the colors are off, and the bird itself is far larger than wrens. This is a roadrunner
roadrunners are huge! that’s a tiny porch light.
if this were a house wren as you’re suggesting, that sign would be barely large enough to be legible. Also the beak is too long for a northern house wren. I can see the confusion with a cactus wren, though this specimen doesn’t have the distinctive wren eyebrow. Seems this easily could be a juvenile greater roadrunner
It’s not a house wren others have identified it as a cactus wren- but I know what wrens look like. that’s a wren.
https://preview.redd.it/g1crtbzbdh9g1.jpeg?width=2048&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=41ec36d250fd14c27ee74989a3a8effcaaca443c
cactus wren vs greater roadrunner
https://preview.redd.it/meqsu1iieh9g1.jpeg?width=612&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d9d22e1453a07e8ad4791612d79ebc10406d139f
juvenile greater roadrunner
I don’t even know anymore, man. It’s not really juvenile season though.
Roadrunners can hatch as late as October, especially following monsoon season
Well it’s almost January so
Except its a road runner.
Op said the porch light is 10 inches wide. That bird is almost a foot long.
that’s a big fricken porch light then!!!
The cactus wren is the largest wren, looks like one to me.
• size. the bird is very small and lightweight. roadrunners are turkey-adjacent. • tail angle. wrens do that dramatic vertical tail flip. roadrunners carry theirs long and horizontal. • beak. short, slightly curved, insect-snatching beak. a roadrunner’s beak is much longer thicker and heavier built. it’s designed for catching and killing larger prey like lizards snakes and rodents rather than insects. • location choice. wrens love little perches. roadrunners are ground-dwelling birds that spend most of their time running on open pavement, desert flats, and roads. they are active predators rather than perch-sitting songbirds.
Roadrunners are smaller than chickens. What are you talking about turkey adjacent??
What do you mean by “Turkey-adjacent”? They’re nowhere near as big as turkeys and not related to turkeys. They’re in the cuckoo family. This bird is absolutely a roadrunner.
do you know how big a roadrunner is
I think people are underestimating the size of this bird by a lot, based on the size of the sign by the light, this bird is totally a reasonable sie for a GRRO
Yeah I took another look a few times and it does in fact look much more like a roadrunner now
My bad
https://preview.redd.it/ad0si74wkh9g1.jpeg?width=1600&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=524596732df7a17f4dce8168e1dfc333ee6dc9fb
juvenile roadrunner - look at the eyes and the hairs around the beak. also the plumage matches a roadrunner more than a cactus wren, which would have a distinctive white line along the brow
for clarification OP, I would measure the wall lamp and edit the post to include that in the description
This makes sense and def looks more like a roadrunner than a cactus wren. Though my brain was trying to make it one until I read your comment.
I also thought cactus wren at first! but the beak hairs and someone else’s comment about it maybe being a juvenile made me reconsider. also look at the eye of the op bird vs a wren
https://preview.redd.it/ollfiv2z0i9g1.jpeg?width=480&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5df20e1a72fa253f0b02894fd1a8986eee0d6177
there are a lot of extra details on the wren’s plumage that don’t match up. tail is also closer to a RR, although the beaks are a lot more similar than I realized!
So many. The wren's eyestripe and this bird's lack of, lack of spotting on belly and flanks, tail:body ratio is off, etc.
it’s pretty big for being a juvenile I would think but I have no idea
they’re big birds! so not too surprising. what a lucky sighting though! I bet that was really cool to see :)
Oh yeah it’s awesome ! He or she is still there !!
Wrens are tiny and LOUD! Like, tiny flying megaphones loud. I'm not sure about the relative size of the lamp thing(?), so how big is the thing that the bird is sitting on? Roadrunners are much bigger than wrens, and are way quieter (Wrens tend to outloud nearly everyone else when it comes to pure loudness in general).
Cuckcoo
The Greater roadrunner is a type of cuckoo.... https://www.animal.photos/bird2/road-run.htm
That's a greater roadrunner, clear as day. People saying wren have never seen a roadrunner apparently. If it were a wren, the text on that sign that people are meant to read would be like 2 pt font.
Tucson native, it's a greater Roadrunner. Astonished by the wren ids...
It's like these people on the Internet who have never seen a roadrunner in person are experts...
This. I used to have one living in my neighborhood that would visit my backyard. And I’m a wildlife biologist that specializes in desert species and would see these guys all the time. This is a greater roadrunner. No doubt.
I showed my husband who has lived in az for 5 years a d could not care any less about birds, he instantly knew it was a roadrunner.
Roadrunner!
1000% a GRRR (greater road runner)
Nope
Yep
Watch out for the coyote 👀
Good point
Does it make a " beep beep " sound ?
No meep meep
It’s a dirty dirty little bird. Look at him showing off his bum.
Wren
Roadrunner.
I thin that’s a roadrunner
Being from Southern NH, I have only seen one roadrunner on a family visit at the condo complex we were at in Scottsdale so I know nothing about them other then he was fast 😂
I know from seeing wrens around here they normally hide in all kinds of places around homes. Do Road runners also do the same? I always pictured them as more ground animals knowing nothing about them.
Did you try Trasher? They have a curved bill like that.
House finch
It's a wren.
I think that’s a Cactus Wren
(It’s been a while but I did a 4 year ornithology course in HS)
Vacation porch sitter!!!🤪🤪🤪😂😂😂
That's the American Buttwaller. So named for this very behavior. They mark their territory by rubbing their butts on it. That's his condo now.
it's a cactus wren. I lived in AZ for 20 years and used to see them everyday. roadrunner are much bigger
[deleted]
Wrong sub for the + syntax, but it doesn't matter because your ID is also wrong
Cactus wren. Sassy and loud in my experience.
It's an Angry Wall-Crapper. You can see the telltale signs when it flies away.
It’s a thrush
That's cuckoo.
newp. only cuckoo in arizona is the yellow billed, afaik, which is a more colorful bird, that looks nothing like that pic. not remotely close. looks to be a roadrunner.
The roadrunner is in the cuckoo family
and yet the bird in the pic is called, for all intents and purposes, a road runner, not a cuckoo.
so what's your point ?
The roadrunner is in the order Cuculiformes and the family Cuculidae, not all cuckoos’ common names end in “cuckoo”.
i'm trying to figure out if you're trying to say that that bird *isn't* called a road runner
They are just correcting you after you said "only cuckoo in Arizona is the yellow billed"
Wow, making a tongue in cheek joke about how calling it a thrush was "cuckoo" led to this thread?
I think it’s a sage thrasher.
cattus wren, smooth doward curved beak, mottling, long tail
It’s a brown creeper