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Description
The Common Ostrich (Struthio camelus) is the largest known bird species in the world. Males have black body feathers and white feathers on their wing-tips and tails, while females have grey-brown body feathers. On both sexes, the head, neck and legs are pink to white in color, and there is some variation in appearance depending on the bird's original location in Africa. It can run for a long time at a speed of 34 mph or even up to about 43 mph, the fastest land speed of any bird.

Social: In the wild, ostriches are primarily social animals. During the breeding season, a small group of females will inhabit the territory of a dominant male, who temporarily joins their herd. During other times of year, ostriches live in large nomadic herds that move through the Savannah, often alongside other species of grazing animals.

Reproduction: During the breeding season, a top hen and her group of females will search for a dominant male with good territory. The group will remain with this chosen male for the entire breeding season. In order to mate, the male will court the top hen with a 'dance' in which he alternates the beating of his wings and ritualistic pecking at the ground, 'wooing' the female into crouching down and allowing him to mate with her. Then, he will dig a nest; a shallow dip in the ground in which the top hen will lay 7-10 eggs.
Subsequently, the male will mate with all females in the group. These females will each lay their eggs around the top hen's, who in turn will then remove some of the eggs that are not hers. Once approximately 20 eggs are in the nest (up to a total of 60 may have been laid) the top hen will incubate them during the day, while the alpha male will incubate them during the night. After 35 to 45 days, the eggs will hatch and the male will take care of them until they are about 10 months old and capable to fend for themselves. After 18 months the ostriches will be full size, and between 2.5 and 4.5 years old they will be able to reproduce themselves.

Size: Weigh in 220 to 350 pounds. Males can be 6 ft 11 in to 9 ft 2 inches in tall./ Females are 5 ft 7 in to 6 ft 7 inches tall.

Description
The Common Ostrich (Struthio camelus) is the largest known bird species in the world. Males have black body feathers and white feathers on their wing-tips and tails, while females have grey-brown body feathers. On both sexes, the head, neck and legs are pink to white in color, and there is some variation in appearance depending on the bird's original location in Africa. It can run for a long time at a speed of 34 mph or even up to about 43 mph, the fastest land speed of any bird.

Social: In the wild, ostriches are primarily social animals. During the breeding season, a small group of females will inhabit the territory of a dominant male, who temporarily joins their herd. During other times of year, ostriches live in large nomadic herds that move through the Savannah, often alongside other species of grazing animals.

Reproduction: During the breeding season, a top hen and her group of females will search for a dominant male with good territory. The group will remain with this chosen male for the entire breeding season. In order to mate, the male will court the top hen with a 'dance' in which he alternates the beating of his wings and ritualistic pecking at the ground, 'wooing' the female into crouching down and allowing him to mate with her. Then, he will dig a nest; a shallow dip in the ground in which the top hen will lay 7-10 eggs.
Subsequently, the male will mate with all females in the group. These females will each lay their eggs around the top hen's, who in turn will then remove some of the eggs that are not hers. Once approximately 20 eggs are in the nest (up to a total of 60 may have been laid) the top hen will incubate them during the day, while the alpha male will incubate them during the night. After 35 to 45 days, the eggs will hatch and the male will take care of them until they are about 10 months old and capable to fend for themselves. After 18 months the ostriches will be full size, and between 2.5 and 4.5 years old they will be able to reproduce themselves.

Size: Weigh in 220 to 350 pounds. Males can be 6 ft 11 in to 9 ft 2 inches in tall./ Females are 5 ft 7 in to 6 ft 7 inches tall.