# I Saw A Sparrow Run Today.

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-a-sparrow-run-today/790555>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [July 5, 2017, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-a-sparrow-run-today/790555 "2017-07-05T17:29:00Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Two\_Many\_Cats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8dc957/32.png) [@Two\_Many\_Cats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Two_Many_Cats)\
**Post date:** [July 5, 2017, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-a-sparrow-run-today/790555/1 "2017-07-05T17:29:00Z")

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As God is my witness, I thought sparrows hopped everywhere.

I was standing at the bus stop this morning, when a sparrow hopped around the empty corner of a store. It then picked itself up and ran.

Admittedly, it didn’t run very far, about a foot in distance maybe. But still, its little legs were pumping independently, just like the legs of a robin.

It then stopped and flew away.

Did I just see an evolutionary event? Sparrows don’t run, they hop! Has anyone else notice any sparrows running? I’ve never seen a sparrow run before.

In other news, I’ve just discovered that the Elmer of Elmer’s Glue is a bull when I thought he was a sheep. And also Elmer of Elmer’s Glue is the mate of Elsie the Cow of Borden’s Dairy Fame.

Now what do I do with this knowledge?

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**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\
**Post date:** [July 5, 2017, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-a-sparrow-run-today/790555/2 "2017-07-05T18:40:16Z")

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> [@Two\_Many\_Cats](#):
>
> In other news, I’ve just discovered that the Elmer of Elmer’s Glue is a bull when I thought he was a sheep. And also Elmer of Elmer’s Glue is the mate of Elsie the Cow of Borden’s Dairy Fame.
> 
> Now what do I do with this knowledge?

I knew that part when I was playing Cowboys and Indians.

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**Author:** ![Trancephalic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trancephalic/32/380_2.png) [@Trancephalic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trancephalic)\
**Post date:** [July 5, 2017, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/i-saw-a-sparrow-run-today/790555/3 "2017-07-05T19:48:46Z")

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according to [this](https://web.stanford.edu/group/stanfordbirds/text/essays/Walking_vs_Hopping.html), there’s no physiological restraint on small birds to either walk/run or hop. Moreover, big birds can and do hop but not to the same extent due to it being less efficient for their size.

I assumed it was like kangaroos, which _are_ obligate hoppers on account of not being able to move their respective hind legs independently (although, I was certain there was some exception in one extant kangaroo species, but google is yielding nada).

Also, Elsie and Elmer had a comic book you [can read here.](http://comicbookplus.com/?cid=1553) I find anthropomorphic animals need a certain amount of abstraction or else the turn from charming to nightmarish.