We had a ringside seat this afternoon when Speedy, our neighborhood roadrunner (seen here atop our car last December) stalked across our front yard, eyeing a mourning dove. Speedy has the moves of a cat on the hunt – furtive, able to hold still. He hid behind plants, darting from one bit of cover to the next. When he finally got with range he charged, leaping into the air as the dove took flight.
He must have missed by an inch or two, but the dove got away. Others may have not been so lucky. In the same part of the yard earlier this year, I found a pile of feathers.