I was 6 years old when I realized that birds wear hats.
It came from the Roadrunner. You know, the bird that was always foiling Wile E. Coyote’s plans. I loved watching that cartoon, and I naturally thought that roadrunners were tall, long-legged, and wore hats with ornate purple feathers on their heads.
So imagine my shock on the family’s road trip out West, when my parents stopped the car and pointed excitedly along the road saying, “Look, girls! A roadrunner!”
I looked, saw nothing. I stood up and leaned out the window and searched frantically.
Huh??
Turns out, the real roadrunner is a fast, foot-high creature that blends amazingly into his desert surroundings. He has a tiny tuft on his head for a hat…and that’s about it. No purple plumes anywhere.
Well! Another childhood belief utterly smashed. But I found out there are other birds out there with hats that are unbelievable. Some are pretty, some are scary, and some are just…indescribable.
So here they are, weird hats that bird wear!
First, the pretty hats:
That Tufted Titmouse is just so cute.
Now the hats of royalty:
Those guys look very….hungry
