18 
THE WILSON BULLETIN— March, 1922 
First, that though the bird often swalloAvs food alive^ it is in 
such state nncomfortahle. Second, that though a spiny horned 
frog is swallowed head lirst, he may nevertheless be coughed up 
in such a manner as not to hurt the lining of the throat. Third, 
in the case of the chick, while the Road-rnnner was still quite 
undeveloped, it may be that the sense of choosing proper food 
is located in the cro]) or gullet, rather than in the mandibles, as 
it undoubtedly is in the older bir<ls, if indeed, the young have 
power of choosing their food under abnormal circumstances. 
Rarely did 1 ever see a Road-rnnner refuse to eat anything in 
the insect line. Ayiienever I overturned a flat rock, everything 
in sight was eaten, save the ants, which I believe were passed 
by on account of their small size. Scorpions, after their tails 
and bodies had been thoronghly bitten, were swallowed with a 
peculiar hollow gulp, as thongli the bird were merely swallowing- 
air. Centipedes were always thoronghly killed before being 
swalloAved, and tarantula spiders had all the legs snipped oft' 
before the body went doAAui. Snails Avere often eaten, shells and 
all, though the sliell Avas sometimes crushed. These snails AA^ere 
often very common on the prairie vegetation, and were ordinar- 
ily passed by, on account of abundance of other food. Never did 
I see a Road-rnnner eat cactus fruit, or in fact any vegetable 
matter save once some l)read soaked in milk, and once a piece of 
grass — SAvalloAved a])parently in })lay. Wasps, hoAAwer, AA^ere 
not sought at all, nor Avere bees. Though one Avas eaten Avhen 
fed to the bird, it Avas not SAvalloAved until after a prolonged 
l)eating, manling, and ins])ectiou. 
One day one of the birds ca])tnred a cotton rat (Sif/modon ) , 
as it ran betAveen some stones in a cactus clump. The rat, prob- 
ably bitten severely, Avas tossed some feet by one l)ird, picked up 
by the otlier bird and Avliacked Avith a sullen thud on the groniid, 
before he kneAV Avhat had happened. Every action of the birds 
AA^as so quick that there Avas no time for escape. This rat, Avhen 
flnally killed, Avas SAvalloAved entire by the smaller bird, and the 
hind feet and tail stuck out of the bird’s month for some time, 
before flnally disappearing. At such a time the bird assumed a 
\ery erect and stilted attitude, no doubt to maintain its balance. 
The fact that these birds occasionally indulged in orgies of 
mud eating lias caused considerable speculation. Mrs. x^lice 
Hall Walters (Bird-Lore, Vol. XVII, No. 1, p. (il) states that this 
may be due to the bird’s need for gravel, but I am inclined to 
doubt this, since, as she states, it is not customary for carni- 
