GREEN BEAT LANGLEY: King of the desert<\/p>\n
Published 8:00 pm Sunday, March 1, 2026<\/p>\n
My wife and I arrived here in Las Cruces, New Mexico for my sabbatical research at the beginning of February.<\/p>\n
The day I first ventured out to our local state park, Mesilla Valley Bosque State Park will be forever emblazoned in my memory.<\/p>\n
I spent a good half hour talking to a park ranger about my work and he provided me with a wealth of knowledge.<\/p>\n
That was not why I\u2019ll remember that visit though.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s true that acquiring knowledge is power, but encountering a creature you\u2019ve wanted to see your nearly your whole life is even more powerful. By nearly my whole life I mean, ever since I watched Saturday morning cartoons as a youngster.<\/p>\n
After talking to the ranger, I headed out on the trail, and there it was.<\/p>\n
I had told friends and family that I really, really wanted to see this bird and knew that at some point I would.<\/p>\n
My encounter took place was right at the beginning of the trail, the very first trail I had taken in New Mexico.<\/p>\n
A roadrunner was there to welcome me!<\/p>\n
In fact, it cooperated quite a bit, and let me take quite a few photos of the sharp-looking roadrunner, before skittering off the trail.<\/p>\n
Yes, they are capable of very rapid bursts of speed, as I witnessed.<\/p>\n
No, it did not say \u201cmeep meep.\u201d<\/p>\n
And no, there was not a wily coyote chasing it, although coyotes do occur in the park. (Apparently coyotes and roadrunners don\u2019t interact much in real life).<\/p>\n
Roadrunners are an integral part of the desert here, feeding on a variety of small critters like lizards, snakes, mice, and arthropods \u2013 including scorpions.<\/p>\n
Their long bills are incredibly powerful and indeed seem pretty self-confident, like their cartoon counterpart.<\/p>\n
The desert can be a hostile place, but roadrunners are very much at home here amidst the temperature extremes, poisonous animals, and scarcity of water.<\/p>\n
I have managed to see a few other roadrunners since that first encounter, and I can\u2019t imagine getting tired of spotting them.<\/p>\n
The last roadrunner I saw was high on a hill, sitting in a small tree, surveying its domain \u2013 like a king of the desert.<\/p>\n
.<\/p>\n
\u2013 David Clements<\/a> PhD, is a professor of biology and environmental studies at Trinity Western University<\/p>\n .<\/p>\n READ MORE:<\/p>\n LAST LANGLEY GREEN BEAT: A different type of white Christmas<\/a><\/p>\n LANGLEY GREEN BEAT: Can water issues be turned around for Truth and Consequence?<\/a><\/p>\n LANGLEY GREEN BEAT: New admirer of a B.C. treasure<\/a><\/p>\n LANGLEY GREEN BEAT: Students spare a hug for Big Lonely Doug <\/a><\/p>\n