CLASS AVES. 



131 



The South American Ostrich* is only about half as 

 large as the African, but is more completely covered 



FIG. 221. 





^Z' 



Ehe' a rh& a. South American Ostrich. 



with feathers. It has three toes instead of two, and a 

 large hooked spur on the wings. 



take turns in sitting during the day, thus enabling the others to travel the long 

 distances necessary to get food in that desert country, without leaving the nest 

 uncovered. The male assumes the task of incubation at night, when his superior 

 strength is needed to drive off prowling animals, which are sometimes found 

 lying dead near the nest, killed by its powerful kick. As the young can not for 

 some time go far, or digest the hard food of the old ones, the females continue 

 to lay extra eggs for their nourishment. In this entire system of incubation, one 

 can but see the nice planning of a Creator, fruitful in methods for meeting an 

 end by varied means. An Ostrich egg is equal to two dozen of those of the 

 domestic hen. It is cooked by placing one end in the hot ashes and stirring 

 the contents with a stick till the omelette is roasted. In Cape Colony and Cali- 

 fornia, there are now Ostrich-farms, where these birds are reared for their plumes. 

 * It is also polygamous, the females laying their eggs scattered at random, 

 which the male collects into a nest, and then broods, hatches, and even tends 

 the young. 



