THE OSTRICH AND ITS KINDRED.
The Ostriches are a very ancient group of birds, and, judging from what we know of their anatomy, they must be regarded as representing the most primitive of living birds. With the exception of a single group, to be discussed presently, all have lost the power of flight. In some, in consequence, the wing has become reduced to a mere vestige. It is a rule in Nature, we may remark, that whenever an organ, such as a wing or a leg or a tail, ceases to be useful, it undergoes forthwith a slow process of reduction or degeneration, growing smaller and smaller in each successive generation, till at last it may even disappear altogether. The loss of flight has been accompanied by a degeneration in the quality of the feathers—that is to say, their serviceability as aids to flight has been entirely lost.
Photo by W. P. Dando, F.Z.S.] [Regent's Park.
RUFOUS TINAMOU, BRAZIL.
The tail-feathers of these birds are so small as to appear to be wanting.
The size of the members of this group varies much. The largest of all is the African Ostrich; the smallest, of the flightless forms, the New Zealand Apteryx. The ostrich-like birds which have retained the power of flight are known as Tinamous, and are natives of South America. All these are smaller than the flightless Apteryx.
Photo by H. Noble, Esq.] [Henley.
RHEA AND YOUNG.