We last met the goofy roadrunner in this post about desert camouflage.  When does a roadrunner stop being goofy?  When it’s a female sitting on her nest; then a roadrunner becomes sweet and vulnerable (for probably the only time in her life).  She remains, however, well camouflaged.

These photos are thanks to the Captain, who has the eaglest of eyes.  He heard a cardinal singing, and when he looked for it his eye fell on the roadrunner in her nest, well and truly hidden in a protective cactus.

Still difficult to see, isn’t she?  It’s hard to imagine being a baby anything and having to find your way out of such a prickly nest; on the other hand, no doubt those nasty spines will keep predators from the sitting bird and the new hatchlings when they arrive.