260 VERTEBKATA. 



f»kfli't<>ii ; ninl tlic stiTiiiim is roducod to a simple convex shield, without any trace of the keel, 

 which in otiiiT hirds t;ives uttachinent to the powerful pectoral tnuscles. To compensate for this 

 defifiencv, however, the (jreat size and muscularity of the legs render the pace of these birds in 

 ruiuiin<; exceedintjlv swift. These curious adaptations afford striking illustrations of the devising 

 Wis<h>ni and Sa<;acity, as well as the care and attention, which presided over the Creation of ani- 

 nijils — lookiuiX into every detail of structure, and providing for each condition and every want and 

 neoessitv, of every species — the smallest as well as the greatest. The pelvis in these birds is of 

 large siz(\ and the two sides of the arch unite at the pubis, which is not the case in any other 

 species. The anterior toes arc strong, either two or three in number, and terminated by strong 

 nails. The hin<ler toe is entirely wanting, except in the genus Apteryx, in Avhich this organ is 

 present in a rudimentarv condition. The plumage is of a very peculiar character, the barbs of 

 the feathers being alwavs separate, and often exhibiting a close resemblance to hairs. The bill is 

 usuallv rather short, depressed, and somewhat triangular; but in the Apteryx it is elongated and 

 cylindrical, with the nostrils placed at the tip. The bead and neck are usually naked, or covered 

 only with a short, downy plumage ; the head is sometimes furnished with a horny crest, and the 

 neck with fleshy wattles. 



THE STRUTHIONID^E. 



This fomily includes the Ostriches, the largest of known birds : in these the bill is broad, de- 

 pressed, and triangular, with the apex obtuse, and the nostrils placed in a groove ; the hinder 

 toe is entirely deficient. The legs are very long, especially the tarsi, which are covered with 

 scales. The plumage varies considerably in its texture in the different species, all of which frequent 

 the desert plains of the countries inhabited by them. 



Genus STRUTIIIO : Struthio. — Of this there is a single species, the Ostrich — Thar Edsjan- 

 mel, or Camel-Bird, of the Orientals, so called from its obvious resemblance to the camel ; the 

 Struzzolo of the Italians, Strauss of the Germans, and Antruche of the French — »S^. camehis, the 

 largest of all existing birds. It inhabits the sandy deserts of tropical Africa, and has been cele- 

 brated since the most remote antiquity.* It measures from six to eight feet in height; its feet 

 consist only of two toes ; its head and neck are nearly naked ; the general plumage is very lax, 

 and the quill-feathers of the wings and tail are particularly remarkable for the length of their 

 barbs, which, although furnished with barbules, are completely separate from each other ; these 

 are the well-known ostrich-feathers, which, from their elegance, are so highly prized as ornaments. 



The ostriches live together in small flocks, feeding upon grass, grain, the tops of plants, «fec.; like 

 the gallinaceous birds, which they resemble in their food, tlicv have an enormous crop and a strong 

 gizzard. In confinement, however, they appear to devour indiscriminately almost any thing that 

 comes in their way, as they have been frequently known to pick up and swallow pieces of leather, 

 wood, stones, and even metal. Yalisnieri found in the stomach of one of these birds a ferrago of 

 grass, nnts, cords, stones, glass, brass, iron, tin, copper, lead, and wood, and among the stones one 

 weighing over a pound. An ostrich in the London Zoological Gardens was deformed and after- 

 ward died from swallowing part of a parasol. These hard substances are probably taken to assist 

 the action of the gizzard. 



The African ostrich is polygamous, the male usually associating with from two to six females. 

 The hens lay all their eggs together — each ten to twelve — in one nest, this being merely a shal- 

 low cavity scraped in the ground, of such dimensions as to be conveniently covered by one of 

 these gigantic birds in incubation. An ingenious device is employed to save space, and give at 

 the same time to all the ecrcrs their due share of warmth. Each one of the esfffs is made to stand 

 with the narrow end on the bottom of the nest and the broad end upward, and the earth which 

 has been scraped out to form the cavity is employed to confine the outer circle, and keep the 

 whole in the proper position. The hens relieve each other in the task of incubation during the 



* The ostrich is generally understood to be the bird designated by the terms Joneh or Jaanah and Rin/mim in the 

 Scriptures— Levit. xi. 19 ; Deut. xiv. 15 ; Job xxx. 29 ; Isaiah xiii. 21 ; xxxiv. 13 ; xliii. 20 ; Jer. 1. 39 ; Lament. It. 

 3; Mic. i. 8; Job xxxix. 13. In many of these passages, Jer. 1. 39, and Isaiah, for instance, our version reads 

 " Oich" and in Leviticus does not mention the ostrich, but the general opinion seems to be in favor of the ostrich 

 beinfi; intended. 



