Roadrunners book by Lynn Hassler Kaufman

BEEP! BEEP! It's hard to find anyone in America who isn't familiar with the roadrunner. Known for its speed, charisma, and impudence, the roadrunner has walked, or run, his way into the hearts of millions. Yet the roadrunner is more than just a cartoon, he's a cuckoo! The roadrunner, a member of the ground-dwelling cuckoo family, has twiggy, powerful legs that can reach speeds of up to fifteen miles per hour. Birding expert Lynn Kaufman gives us this new title for our Look West series. Roadrunners is an introduction to the life of this independent and self-reliant creature. Among the exciting facts you will find: the roadrunner is a reluctant flier and will only fly in short bursts when it feels threatened. His usual diet consists of insects and scorpions. However, one of the roadrunner's favorite treats is also one of the most venomous creatures in the desert, the rattlesnake. In Roadrunners, its easy to see why from central California to Kansas, the roadrunner is an icon of the Western environment. 30 photos & illustrations. About the series: Look West: What do you find? Wide, wild landscapes...extraordinary plants and animals...rugged people rich in history...ghost towns and working ranches...ancient pueblos and ultramodern urban areas. In the West, coyotes howl. Native Americans endure and flourish. Kokopelli, the mythical humpbacked flute player, prances across the cliff dwellings and into popular cultureand thousands of curio shops. Every small, handsome book in Rio Nuevo Publishers' new Look West series presents a unique aspect of the American West. Using words and pictures, each volume explores a special Western topic or phenomenon, and all have been written and illustrated by regional experts. Each of these attractive 6 x 6-inch hardcover books contains 64 pages of text, illustrations, and photographs. And each one allows the reader to capture the spirit of the West in the palm of a hand. Published By Rio Nuevo Pub on 2005-01-01