Ostriches are the largest and heaviest living birds. They are the fastest running birds but cannot fly. Ostriches are normally about 8 feet tall and weigh 105kg. They also have the biggest eyeballs than any other birds. Their thick eyelashes protect the eyes during sand storms. The feathers of male ostriches are mostly black with white at the ends of the wings and in the tail. The feathers, which are soft and fluffy, serve as insulation against the harsh temperature.

Females and young males are greyish-brown and white. The head and neck of both male and female ostriches is nearly bare. Their legs are strong and lack feathers. Unlike other

birds, they have just two toes on each foot. Their wings are large with a wingspan of over 6 feet but are not used for flight. Their most important senses are their excellent eyesight and acute hearing.

THEIR FOOD

Ostriches eat insects, fruits, seeds, nuts and small reptiles including plants. They also feed on grasses, bushes and forage on trees. Ostriches will eat almost anything shiny. Some have been known to eat watches, bottle caps, glass, locks and bicycle valves. But they could not digest the metals they eat. Metals stay in their gizzards and are used to grind and digest their real food. They get the water from the plants they eat.

THEIR HOME

Ostriches are found only in Africa. Many now live in forest preserves and other sanctuaries. These birds are native to the dry savannas of Africa and are well adapted to desert life. They can tolerate a wide range of temperatures. Ostriches can go without water for a long time. But they need a gallon-and-a-half a day so they usually stay near water.

YOUNG ONES

Female ostriches lay their eggs in a single communal nest, a simple pit, 30 to 60 cm deep. The eggs are incubated by the females by day and the male by night. This is because the female’s lighter brown feathers blend in with the sand and with the surrounding grassland colours. And the black feathers of male are nearly undetectable at night.

The gestation period is about 45 days. Shortly before the eggs hatch, the chicks will start calling from inside the shell, so the parents will know them by their calls once they are hatched. The chicks run about within minutes of hatching. Males are the one that teach the young one how and on what to feed. The life span of an ostrich is from 30 to 70 years.

WORLD’S BIGGEST EGGS

Ostriches lay the biggest eggs in the world. Their eggs are almost spherical in shape and are glossy and cream in color, with thick shells marked by small pits. Eggs are six to eight inches in length, six inches in diameter and weigh almost 1400g. One egg is equivalent in volume to about 20 hens’ eggs. A single egg could feed about eight to ten people. Eggshells are so strong that they can support the weight of a 280-pound person. Different kinds of dishes and water bottles are made out of their egg-shells. — Compiled by Merina Pradhan