The Audubon Societies 



159 



WITH THE ARIZONA ROAD-RUNNERS 



By WILLIAM L. and IRENE FINLEY 

 Photographs by the authors 



H I"^ hissing 

 sand curled 

 away from the 

 wheels as we 

 plowed through 

 the wide wash 

 of the Rillito. 

 For hours we 

 had jogged 

 stolidly across 

 the palpitating desert around the town of 

 Tucson. Nothing had stirred, until sud- 

 denly across the white road, scuttling 

 from one gnarly cactus to another, slid 

 a slim, dark bird, with long tail and head 

 lowered as if dodging the scrutiny of 

 strange eyes. He became invisible in the 

 silence that reached out over the shim- 

 mering mesa; but I knew we had seen a 

 Road-runner. 



We had not journeyed to Arizona just 

 to discover this bird, but we should have 

 felt the trip was a failure had we not been 



lucky enough to see and study Geococcyx 

 calif onilaiiHs, Ground-Cuckoo, Road-run- 

 ner, Mexican Paisano, Snake-killer, Cha- 

 parral-cock, or, better. Cock o' the 

 Desert! 



The slim shadow came out again, skulk- 

 ing from one cover to another, and making 

 for the west end of the Catalina Moun- 

 tains, which lifted their heights directly 

 out of the flat plain in front of us. How he 

 slid along when alarmed, a brown streak 

 low along the ground, then paused, with 

 his tail moving rythmically up and down, 

 and his crest pointed! 



There was not a breath or motion save 

 the dancing of the heat-devils. We were 

 simmering in the sun, but we kept an eye 

 on our bird, and he on us, as he glided 

 among the bushes a little way ahead. 



"We'll see what kind of a game he's 

 playing," I said, and throwing the reins 

 to my wife I started in a straight-away 

 dash to overtake this teaser with a yellow 



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'jSHS^^^ 



'THE REAL MASTER OF THE THORNY DESERT" 



