Photographer Captures Coyote Catching Road Runner in 1,325-Acre Los Angeles Preserve

Q: Could this viral photograph of a coyote carrying a roadrunner actually be the result of scavenging rather than an epic chase?

Yes, it could have been scavenging, but the available reporting points more toward predation than a carcass pickup. The photograph itself shows only the end state: a coyote carrying a Greater Roadrunner. It does not document the actual moment of capture, so scavenging cannot be ruled out from the image alone. Coyotes are opportunistic feeders and do scavenge as well as hunt. That said, the context favors a fresh kill. Alexander deBarros saw the coyote moving off with the bird during a field survey in the Chatsworth Nature Preserve, and reports described the scene as a natural predation event. There was no indication of a roadkill situation, human disturbance, or another obvious source of a dead bird. The preserve is also intact habitat where both coyotes and resident roadrunners naturally occur. Biology supports that interpretation. Greater Roadrunners can run roughly 15 to 20 mph, while coyotes can sprint much faster, making a successful chase plausible in real life even if cartoons suggest otherwise. Roadrunners can also become vulnerable if caught off guard, injured, or trapped by terrain. So the cautious answer is that scavenging is possible, but unproven. Based on the setting, the observer’s account, and the species’ real predator-prey relationship, the stronger explanation is that the coyote had recently caught the roadrunner rather than merely finding it dead.

3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Sep 4

Alexander deBarros photographed a coyote carrying a road runner in Los Angeles' Chatsworth Nature Preserve during a Saturday ecosystem survey.
The image documented a real predation event that sharply contrasts with the long-running Looney Tunes premise in which Wile E. Coyote never catches the bird.
DeBarros was with a San Fernando Valley Audubon Society survey team conducting its monthly check of the 1,325-acre preserve when he took the photo.
KTLA first reported the photograph, which turned an unusual wildlife moment into a widely shared pop-culture reversal.

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The New York Times2h ago

Photographer Captures Coyote Catching Road Runner in Los Angeles Preserve

Yahoo! Voices2h ago

Great Job, Internet!: Real coyote's roadrunner meal captured for posterity in California

celebitchy.com10h ago

LA photographer lands first ever pic of coyote & roadrunner: 'it's kismet'

8 Sources

Could this viral photograph of a coyote carrying a roadrunner actually be the result of scavenging rather than an epic chase?

How did a real-life coyote finally outsmart a roadrunner, shattering decades of cartoon mythology in the heart of Los Angeles?

What hidden ecological factors are allowing natural predator-prey battles to unfold right inside Southern California's dense urban landscape?

Photographer Captures Coyote Catching Road Runner in 1,325-Acre Los Angeles Preserve

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