1. Ostriches
Intro to Ag

2. Ostriches are related to dinosaurs?
True or False

3. TRUE!
Very old animals
Fossils have been found that date back 120 million years
Mary Higby Schweitzer found soft tissue in a T-Rex skeleton
Matches closely to that of ostriches

4. Ostrich Facts Birds Can’t fly Native to Africa
Adult males: 7-9 ft tall, lbs
Females: lbs.
In wild, live to be 20 yrs.
In captivity yrs, even 75!

5. Distinguishing Sexes Male: Females Cock/rooster
Black with white plumes and wing tips
When breeding, bright red beak, shins, and sometimes neck
Females
Hens
Light brown and grey
Smaller than male
Silvery grey during season

6. Reproduction
Practice courtship behavior: a complicated series of displays, dancing, vocalization, and synchronous behavior
Male will “build” a nest in sand
Females sit on nest during the day
Males sit on nest during the night

7. Incubator
Often will be moved to the incubator to preserve the life of the eggs

8. Eggs Incubation: 39-59 days (42) Can lay 40-100 eggs per year, avg 60
Largest of all bird eggs
Smallest in relation to body size
1 ostrich egg= 24 chicken eggs
3.5-5 lbs each

9. Ostrich Products Meat: Leather: leanest of all red meats 70 lbs
14 sq. ft
Very exclusive
Distinguishable by pattern of quill sockets
Soft to touch
Durable and flexible
Resist cracking, drying, stiffness
Hermes, Louis Vuitton, Gucci, Cartier, Prada

10. Ostrich Products Feathers Eggs
Used for decorating clothing and home furnishings
Eggs
Could be food
decoration

11. Egg Crafts

12. Fun Fact: Ostrich can run up to 40 mph for 30 min.
Second fastest land animal, 1st with 2 legs
Have 2 toes, all other birds have 3 or 4
Eyes are almost 2 inches (largest of any land animal)
Attracted to small, shiny objects and peck curiously at them
“ostrich nurseries”

13. True of False
Ostriches bury their head in the sand?

14. False
Male ostriches dig holes in the sand (608ft by 2-3 ft deep) for nest
When they are digging it looks from a distance as if they are standing with their heads in the sand.

15. True of False
Ostriches are mean?

16. False
Not all are mean
Ostriches are territorial and can be unpredictable
Can be aggressive and are capable of injury
Have claws 4in on both feet and kick very powerfully
Give warning signs

17. True or False
An ostrich brain is the size of an eye ball?

18. True!
Have very small brains!