Road runners

[brianlg31]

Do Road Runners eat quail eggs?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Passthrough]

Yes! And baby quail and baby turkeys!

[Sidro]

Roadrunners eat mostly animals, including almost anything they can catch: small mammals, reptiles, frogs, toads, insects, centipedes, scorpions, and birds. Roadrunners also eat carrion and prey on Quail eggs and chicks. They kill rattlesnakes by pecking them repeatedly in the head. They slam large prey, such as rodents and lizards, against a rock or the ground multiple times to break down the bones and elongate the victim, making it easier to swallow. These opportunistic predators have also been known to grab birds from backyard feeders or nest boxes. In winter, fruit, seeds, and other plant material make up 10 percent of the roadrunner’s diet

[Buckwheat]

Then sun of a guns! I didn't know this. Thought they only ate snakes and lizards. Well I learned something new again on the ole green screen.

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

[eradicator]

Yes! And baby quail and baby turkeys!

and snakes. It's a catch/22 with those critters

[backwoods]

It's a myth.
Spend some time researching it.
Roadrunners are predators but there is no evidence that they feed on, much less impact, quail.
Also, just an FYI it is illegal to kill a roadrunner.

Hogs on the other hand have been documented to predate on quail nest.

[tex4k]

Wouldn't go so far as to say it's a myth, they can and do eat baby birds, when they run across them. I don't think they take enough to make anymore impact than snakes, coons, skunks, or Hawks they're just part of the predator/prey ecosystem. If you were trying to raise quail or chickens in a confined system they'll make an impact, had one getting baby chicken for breakfast and supper everyday until he had a fatal accident crossing the road. btw ground squirrels will snatch a baby if the opportunity presents itself too.

[backwoods]

Quail are very low on the food chain. Even white tail deer will eat them

[Texas Grown]

They also mate for life.

I was at somebodies camp last Sept. They had a lot of them there. They would walk or run through camp all the time. Sometimes they would only be 5-7 feet away. It was very interesting watching their social structure. And watching them forage and hunt.

[DFA]

They are very cool birds to watch, and definitely a predator. I have heard of quail hunters shooting them on sight, but I like to watch them hunt. There are lots of quail and always see roadrunners at my lease. Must not impact the quail population much.

[Tejasbacon]

https://youtu.be/YwLspcdm0Bs

[niceg3s]

They also mate for life.

I was at somebodies camp last Sept. They had a lot of them there. They would walk or run through camp all the time. Sometimes they would only be 5-7 feet away. It was very interesting watching their social structure. And watching them forage and hunt.

They were like that at Big Bend. Would walk right up to you. No fear.

[tward1604]

I've seen them eat baby quail and also go up in trees and eat dove eggs. they are also very rough on the coyote population

[coop]

I know for a fact they will eat chicken eggs and baby chicks so I don't why they wouldn't eat quail eggs and chicks.

JC

[tigerscowboy]

Seriously. Snakes on the menu. They eat whatever they want.