Struthio camelus
In the African savanna, a strange bird can sometimes be seen among the herds of large mammals. It has long, powerful legs but its wings are to tiny to allow it to fly. It runs when in danger. This bird is the ostrich. It runs on its toes and is the only bird that has 2 toes on each foot. Ostriches run faster than any animal, with the exception of the cheetah.
Oddly enough, the habits of the popular ostrich are not well known. Despite its size --- it can stand as tall as 8 feet --- and strength, it does not let people get too close because it doesn’t trust them. Ostriches diet consist mainly of plants, including roots, and a lot of seeds. They will also eat insects such as grasshoppers and crickets. Like many birds, they swallow stones to help break up food in their gizzards.
At mating time, the males fight for the females. Fighting is usually an aggressive show with the males pecking, kicking, and hissing. Females share nests :2 to 5 females will all lay their eggs in one nest. The nest can hold up to 60 eggs! The huge eggs weight more than 3 pounds each and can resist the weight of the 240 pounds male ostrich, who sit on them most of the time.
Hunted for its beautiful feathers, the ostrich almost totally disappeared. One type, the Arabian ostrich, became extinct. Strict rules were necessary to save the African ostriches from extinction.
CLASS : Birds
FAMILY : The ostrich
HEIGHT : 8 feet
WEIGHT : 150 to 250 pounds
DIET : Plants shoots, leaves, flowers, seeds and small animals
NUMBER OF EGGS : 4 to 8
HOME : Africa South of the Sahara
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