At the commencement of the pairing-season the cocks endeavour to attract the attention of the hens by their nuptial display. Advancing towards the latter they ruffle out their feathers like an excited turkey-cock, at the same time lowering their wings and spreading out the tail like a fan. The gular pouch is also inflated, so as to make the neck appear as thick as possible, and the beautiful under feathers are displayed to the utmost extent, the body and neck being half buried in a billowy mass of snow-white plumes. It is at this time also that the cocks rush at one another with trailing wings to contend with beak and talons for the mastery. On such occasions it is possible to capture these generally shy birds with the hand.
The nest is generally constructed amid growing corn, the hen merely scratching a slight hollow in the ground, which she lines with straw, bents, and grass. The three or four eggs are incubated by the hen alone, and when the young are hatched, both these and their parents leave the standing corn only for short periods. At first the young bustards feed chiefly upon insects and worms, to which they are directed by the old birds, but later on vegetable substances constitute almost their sole food. Young peas and cabbage form very favourite food, but in default of better nutriment grass is largely eaten.
THE SOMALI OSTRICH
(Struthio molybdophanes)
OSTRICHES, which are natives of the deserts and semi-desert plains of Africa and south-western Asia, cannot possibly be mistaken for any other birds, and therefore stand in no need of description, although it may be as well to mention that they are the largest of living birds, and are absolutely peculiar in having only two toes to each foot, as well as in the absence of feathers on the thigh. It was at one time considered that the lack of the power of flight, which characterises these birds in common with their relatives the rheas of South America, the emu of Australia, the cassowaries of Austro-Malaya and Australasia, and the tiny kiwis and rheas of New Zealand, was a primitive feature. But this is manifestly an erroneous idea, and all these groups are evidently descended from birds endowed with the power of flight, their nearest relatives being the tinamus of South America and the game-birds, with which they agree in the presence of longitudinal light stripes on the downy dress of the chicks.
Naturalists now recognise four kinds of African ostriches, which, although generally classed as distinct species, might perhaps be better regarded as local races of a single specific type. These, regarded as species, comprise the typical red-legged and red-thighed North African ostrich (Struthio camelus), ranging into Palestine and Arabia, and laying thickly pitted eggs; the Somali ostrich (S. molybdophanes), characterised by its bluish grey neck and thighs; the Masai ostrich (S. masaicus) of East Africa, with the bare parts red, the body-plumage of the cocks brownish black in place of black, and the eggs pitted; and, lastly, the South African S. australis, which lays smooth-shelled eggs and has the neck and thighs light bluish grey. In the Somali ostrich, which inhabits Somaliland and western Gallaland as far as the Juba River, the colour of the bare parts of the body may best be described as grey or slaty blue, while the margins of the beak and the front surfaces of the lower part of the legs are dull vermilion.
Ostriches are essentially gregarious birds, associating either in small family parties comprising five or six birds, or in large flocks, which in East Africa mingle freely with herds of hartebeests, gnus, and bontequaggas. They require a wide extent of open country, with grass and, above all, water, of which they drink frequently and copiously. Although ostriches feed chiefly upon vegetable substances, they likewise consume worms, insects, molluscs, reptiles, and probably also small birds and mammals, while in captivity they will swallow almost anything that is offered them, including nails, keys, and copper coins. In a state of nature they swallow sand, earth, and small stones, in order to assist the action of their gizzards.
The cocks appear to be polygamous, although some doubt has been expressed as to whether this is really the case; and it seems certain that several hens lay in the same nest, where as many as thirty eggs may be laid in a slight hollow in the sand. Incubation is undertaken by the cock alone, and it is he who looks after the chicks, which he tends with remarkable care. The chicks when they escape from the eggs (each of which weighs as much as twenty-four hens’ eggs) are as large as hens; and, with their bristly feather-quills, are rather suggestive of two-legged hedgehogs.
Ostriches are extremely shy and remarkably swift birds, so that they are difficult either to stalk or to ride down. When brought to bay, or when running loose in captivity, they should be approached with great caution, as a kick from their strongly clawed feet will prove fatal to an animal of the size of a jackal, if not also to a human being. The vision of these giant birds is very strongly developed and capable of sweeping the country to the distance of at least a mile; and their senses of hearing and smell are also good, although taste appears to be practically wanting. Occasionally ostriches indulge in a kind of dance; and they are also subject, when startled, to sudden collapse, which may have given rise to the old fable of their burying their heads in the sand and leaving their bodies exposed.