I was concerned late this morning, when I scrambled up the small hill of dirt and gravel behind our rig to walk Patches and spied a female roadrunner. Not that seeing a roadrunner is a problem, but this one appeared to have been roughed up or caught by a predator. I had my camera with me and zoomed in on her, thinking to look for injuries. All I could think of was that a bunch of her feathers had been pulled out and that she was hurt because she didn't move upon seeing Patches with me. But silly me, the roadrunner was only doing what I was doing; enjoying the warmth of the sun. By spreading her wings out and down and ruffling up her body feathers she was able to soak up a few rays and feel the heat of the sun on her skin. Once I stepped a little closer she settled her feathers and took off at a roadrunner-like pace, disappearing into the scrub bushes. And once again, I was able to see a little bit more of nature because of the slow pace of walking a cat.
Speaking of potential injuries, the desert is filled with trees and bushes that cover themselves in thorns to protect their leaves, seeds and berries. This little beauty is nothing BUT thorns and is the main reason I walk with a flashlight at night--those thorns are like needles.
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Feeling relief here that the roadrunner was simply sunning herself. We don't have roadrunners up here, and to this day, I am unable to think of one without envisioning Wile E. Coyote. :-)
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