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Ostrich Animal Study & Lapbook
An 8 foot, 300 pound, two-toed bird
that cannot fly & eats rocks!
Research by Lisa H.
Templates by Ami
Photos contributed by Carolina
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Lapbook Templates
Research
Scientifically speaking:
Classification of ostriches
Kingdom: animalia
Phylum: chordata
Class: aves
Order: struthioniformes
Family:
struthianidae
Genus: struthio
Species: s. camelus
Their scientific name means camel-like.
If Ostriches
cannot fly, then why do they have wings?
While their wings cannot lift them off the ground, an ostrich will use their
wings to change direction while running up to 45 mph.
Meet the Ostrich Family:
Ostriches live
in herds of 5-50 birds.
Males are called roosters and females are hens.
The dominant male will attract the female by kantling: he will lay on the
ground, rock back & forth, stretch out his wings and make a very loud noise.
The rooster will then scrape a hole in the dirt that becomes a nest.
A hen can lay up to 100 eggs a year, but usually will lay about 60. She can
lay an egg very other day.Other hens in the herd will lay their eggs in the
nest. Each hen can identify her eggs, but only the dominant rooster and hen
will incubate the eggs and later raise the chicks.
The time it takes for a newly laid egg to hatch is about 42 days.
The dominant or major couple will take turns sitting on the eggs. The hen will sit through the day and the rooster will sit through the night. The hen’s grey colored feathers help her to blend into the sand, making it hard for predators to spot her. The same thing is true of the male. His dark brown feathers make him a hard target to spot at night.
Ostrichs don’t live in houses
Ostriches are capable of increasing or decreasing their own body temperature by 4 degrees. This allows them to live in many different climates. They used to be found over all of Africa except in very green or moist areas. Currently, the ostrich can be found in the semi-arid savannahs of Southern Africa. Ostriches have lived in Asia and the Middle East, but hunting and habitat destruction has caused them to die out. Currently they are not endangered, but the size of herds have dwindled, raising concern and attention.
Growing up Ostrich:
An ostrich chick is introduced
to its somewhat dry savannah home in Southern Africa when the chick breaks out
of it’s 5x7 inch egg.
The eggs weigh approx. 3 lbs.
Only 10% of eggs hatch.
The chick’s first lesson outside the egg is how to find and
eat food and is taught by the rooster.
The chick grows very fast at a speed of 12 inches a month until it is 7 or 8 months old.
Ostrich Grub:
Ostriches are omnivores, but if ostriches used plates and bowls, here’s what you would find:
Succulent plants
Seeds
Roots
Flowers
Leaves
And occasionally:
Lizards
Locusts
But always you’ll find:
Rocks
Ostriches have no teeth to help them break up the food they eat. So, they eat stones to help grind their food in not the stomach but their gizzards. Most of an ostrich’s water intake comes form the plant life it eats.
Ostrich Anatomy 101:
Height: 6-9ft tall (1.75-2.75 m)
Weight: 200-330 lbs (90-150 kg)
Eye: 2” making it the largest eye of land animals
Weird Ostrich Facts:
1. An ostrich’s brain is no bigger than it’s eye.
2. You wanted a soft boiled ostrich egg, you would have to boil it for almost 2 hours.
3. An ostrich has only two toes. Other birds have 3-4 toes.
4. A hen can lay a 3lb egg every other day.
5. They like to travel with grazing groups like zebras.
6. Ostriches can whistle, snort and make booming sounds.
Exposing the truth: Ostriches are not chickens!
When confronted by a predator, an ostrich will not bury it’s head in the sand. An ostrich will do one of three things:
1. Run away from the egg nest, hoping to lure the predator away from the eggs.
2. Lay flat on the desert sand, making it harder for the predator to see it.
3. Stand and fight with it’s powerful legs and sharp clawed toes. One blow of an ostrich
foot can seriously hurt or even kill a lion.
Learn even more about ostriches! San Diego Zoo Ostrich Page
Materials and information on this website belong to the original composers. It may be used for your own personal and school use.
Material may not be used for resale. © 2005-07 HSS