A 660-Mile Journey of Hope: How One Man Defied the Odds to Save a Roadrunner Hatchling
A “kindhearted” couple drove across the state of Texas in hopes of saving the baby bird
Roadrunners, popularized by the Looney Tunes cartoon, are a species of fast-running ground cuckoos defined by their long tails and crests. Unless you live in the southwestern and south-central United States and Mexico, it's possible you have never encountered a road runner in the wild. However, those who live in desert climates are no strangers to the birds, which lay eggs like other birds. On May 31, a baby road runner arrived at the Rogers Wildlife Rehabilitation Center, a nonprofit bird rescue in Hutchins, Tex., a Dallas suburb, and the story of how it got there is incredibly heartwarming.
Paula Hagan told The Washington Post that she was working while doing intake at the rescue center when a woman walked in carrying a box with a baby roadrunner who hatched the previous evening.
The woman told her that her husband accidentally ran over a bird's nest while cleaning land on a property where he was working. All but one of the eggs were crushed. The man scooped it up and drove the egg home, for 500 miles, being incredibly careful not to break it.
The egg hatched the night of May 30 while at home. He and his wife tried to find a place they could bring the bird, but there were no places nearby. So the next day she drove another 160 miles to the bird sanctuary in Hutchins.
"I just couldn't believe it," Hagan said, pointing out that most people would have just left the baby bird to die. "It just tells me they're both very kindhearted."
"This baby road runner got first place today (Wednesday) for being the youngest little one to be brought to Rogers Wildlife today. He hatched yesterday and came to us with a story!
A young man who lives in Lufkin, Texas was clearing property in West Texas near Odessa when he unknowingly ran over a nest of eggs on the ground. One surviving egg rolled out so he scooped it up," the center wrote in a Facebook post.
"His wife told us after he finished the job, he drove home 11 hours with the egg in his hand to keep it warm! The egg hatched last night in Lufkin, but then the couple wondered who could raise the baby. After finding no bird rehabbers near Lufkin, the wife found Rogers Wildlife online and drove him to us all the way from East Texas! He is now snuggling in a container on top of a warmer and under a little blanket with two other nestlings. Now the question is what to name this baby road runner who has already traveled across Miles and Miles of Texas!"
Miles did well the first few days, but stopped eating on June 3 and passed away the following day. Although the story doesn't have a happy ending, Hagan points out that the most heartwarming part of it is the couple who went out of their way to save it. "Working there, volunteering there, renews my faith in humanity," Hagan said, adding: "It's just very moving to me to see how kindhearted they are."
