Find plush toy Roadrunners, plus facts and information at Animals n More.

The Roadrunners shown above include a plush toy Roadrunner from Hansa and a Conservation Critters Roadrunner. Find these roadrunners in the Jeannie's Cottage online gift shop.

The Roadrunner (Geococcyx californianus) is a member of the Cuculidae (Cuckoo) family. It is a large, crested bird (20 to 24 inches) that prefers walking or running to flying. It can reach speeds of up to 17 mph.

Its diet consists of snakes (including rattlesnakes), insects and lizards. The nest is a shallow cup of sticks placed in a small tree, bush or cactus. The female lays 2 to 12 white eggs. These are laid over a period of three days to allow the chicks to hatch at different times. The incubation period is from 18 to 20 days. Both parents tend the nest. The first chicks to hatch have a better survival rate than the late comers, which are many times runts. Usually only about 3 or 4 young make it to adulthood. It generally takes 18 days to fledge. Can have from one to two broods per year depending on the location.

This bird's range is throughout the Southwestern states of the U.S. and can be found in the Sonoran, Chihuahuan and Mojave deserts. It prefers open, flat, arid desert terrain. It has a soft, dovelike cooing call, notes successively descending.

Roadrunners live to the ripe old age of 7 or 8.

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