LC
Greater Roadrunner Geococcyx californianus



Taxonomy

Taxonomic source(s)
del Hoyo, J., Collar, N.J., Christie, D.A., Elliott, A. and Fishpool, L.D.C. 2014. HBW and BirdLife International Illustrated Checklist of the Birds of the World. Volume 1: Non-passerines. Lynx Edicions BirdLife International, Barcelona, Spain and Cambridge, UK.

IUCN Red List criteria met and history
Red List criteria met
Critically Endangered Endangered Vulnerable
- - -

Red List history
Year Category Criteria
2022 Least Concern
2016 Least Concern
2012 Least Concern
2009 Least Concern
2008 Least Concern
2004 Least Concern
2000 Lower Risk/Least Concern
1994 Lower Risk/Least Concern
1988 Lower Risk/Least Concern
Species attributes

Migratory status not a migrant Forest dependency does not normally occur in forest
Land-mass type Average mass -
Range

Estimate Data quality
Extent of Occurrence (breeding/resident) 4,530,000 km2 medium
Severely fragmented? no -
Population
Estimate Data quality Derivation Year of estimate
Population size 1400000 mature individuals poor inferred 2022
Population trend increasing - inferred -
Rate of change over the past 10 years/3 generations (longer of the two periods) 5-10% - - -
Generation length 3.42 years - - -

Population justification: The global population is inferred to number 1.4 million mature individuals (Partners in Flight 2022).

Trend justification: The species has been increasing at an average rate of 0.9% per year between 1970 and 2017 (Partners in Flight 2022). This equates to an increase of 10% over three generations (10.3 years). Short-term trends suggest that the population in North America has increased by 5% over the past ten years, though this value is non-significant (Pardieck et al. 2018).


Country/territory distribution
Country/Territory Presence Origin Resident Breeding visitor Non-breeding visitor Passage migrant
Mexico extant native yes
USA extant native yes

Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBA)
Country/Territory IBA Name

Habitats & altitude
Habitat (level 1) Habitat (level 2) Importance Occurrence
Desert Hot suitable resident
Grassland Subtropical/Tropical Dry suitable resident
Shrubland Subtropical/Tropical Dry major resident
Shrubland Subtropical/Tropical High Altitude suitable resident
Altitude 0 - 2500 m Occasional altitudinal limits  

Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2025) Species factsheet: Greater Roadrunner Geococcyx californianus. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/greater-roadrunner-geococcyx-californianus on 10/01/2025.
Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2025) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/search on 10/01/2025.