Squirrel v.s. Roadrunner

[Greybeard]

While driving truck up utlity line easement at our little place the other morning, I spotted an unusual "fluttering furball" in the grass several yards in front of me. My approach broke up one hell of a fight between a roadrunner and a squirrel. I could not tell which one was "winning", but the squirrel was the first to run off into the woods.

At first, I suspected the squirrel might have been messing with the roadrunner's nest, then got to thinking, no, the roadrunner may have been trying to make food out of some baby squirrel ...

While I've observed various wild critters independently doing their own things out there for years, this was the first time I'd ever seen 'em two of 'em going after each other in a little "turf war".

Anyone else got thoughts on which one was likely the "agressor"?

 

[armoredman]

Pics would have been interesting.
Insert captions of yelling, "Furbrain!" "Featherhead!"

 

[Art Eatman]

Well, roadrunners are opportunists; I know they'll kill and eat small quail. But, I've also seen a rock squirrel grab and eat a baby quail, even as Mama Quail pecked at him.

I guess it's a tossup as to which was the agressor. I doubt that in the normal course of affairs that either would attack the other as a potential food source. Possibly one was just sitting and watching his world, and the other came to close and was regarded as a threat...

Art

 

[Kevlarman]

Squirrels eat meat?

WHen I was sitting in highschool class the other day I was staring out the window when I saw a brown roadrunner run buy with something in his mouth.
He came back a few seconds later and stopped right in front of the window; they're tinted so maybe he was looking at his reflection. But anyways, in his mouth was a still-wriggling lizard! I found that pretty funny.

 

[Greybeard]

Yep, I've seen roadrunners headed for the woods with a small snakes (hopefully copperheads!) in their beaks. And they seem to have a "field day" when the grasshoppers get cranking.

 

[arcticap]

I have read that occassionally, Gray Squirrels will eat young birds still in there nests. I guess that the bird family owes the squirrels at least a few decent meals for all the birds that prey on them.