The Ostrich happens to be a large flightless bird that belongs to one or two species of large flightless birds native to Africa, and the only survivor of the genus Struthio. There have been some analyses which indicate that Somali Ostrich may be better considered a full species apart from the Common Ostrich. However, most taxonomists consider it to be a subspecies.
As the largest living bird, the male common ostrich measures about 2.5 m in height and 135 kg in weight. Furthermore, it has very strong legs and feet that are two toed, and these enable the ostrich to run at high speed. They are also used in defense. The body of the mature male is covered with black feathers with the plumes of the wings and tail being white. On the other hand, both the female and the young male possess grey feathers. The bill of the ostrich is wide and flat, the small head possesses large eyes, and the long neck is sparsely covered with downy feathers.
The Ostrich has its diet mainly consisting of plant matter, despite the fact that it also eats invertebrates. It lives in nomadic groups which contain between five and fifty birds. These groups are such that there is always one cock with several hens. The hens usually lay about 14 eggs, and the males incubate them at night. The female may also sit on the eggs during the day. When the ostrich feels threatened, it either hides itself by lying flat against the ground, or runs away. If cornered, the large bird can attack with a kick from its powerful legs. It’s been realised that mating patterns differ by geographical region; however, territorial males fight for a harem of two to seven females. Though these fights only last for minutes, they can easily cause death via the slamming of heads into opponents. These birds become sexually mature when they are 2 to 4 years old with the females maturing about six months earlier than males.