The World's Largest Bird: Fun Facts About Ostriches
Who do you think would win in a race: a rhino or an ostrich?
The answer is the ostrich!
What about a race against a tiger?
That's right — probably still the ostrich.
The world's largest bird may not be able to fly, but it can run at up to 70 kilometers per hour, making it one of the world's fastest animals.
Here are some more interesting facts about them!
They have large bodies — and large eggs
An ostrich can grow up to 2.75 meters tall and weigh more than 150 kilograms. It may be no surprise, then, that ostrich eggs are the largest eggs in the world.
An ostrich egg is about 15 centimeters long and weighs about 1.4 kilograms. The eggs are so strong that if a person were to stand on one, it wouldn't break!
Ostriches have very big eyes, too — bigger than their own brains, in fact!
They deliver a strong kick
Never make an ostrich angry — it has a strong kick, and it's not afraid to use it! An ostrich kick is strong enough to kill many different animals, including lions.
Ostriches also have long, sharp claws on their two-toed feet, which they use against other animals.
Their heads aren't in the sand
If you're told not to "bury your head in the sand," it means you shouldn't hide from a bad situation.
This comes from the idea that ostriches bury their heads in the sand to hide from danger — but they don't actually do this!
They do make holes to put their eggs in, however. So if you see an ostrich with its head in the sand, it's probably checking on its eggs!
