14 THE OSTRICH. 



almost like the quill of the porcupine. The 

 pltimage is generally black and white ; the up- 

 per part of the head and neck are covered with 

 fine white hair, and in some places there are 

 small tufts of it, which grow from a single shaft, 

 about the thickness of a pin. The neck of this 

 animal, which is of a livid flesh colour, seems 

 to be more slender in proportion than that of 

 other birds, from its not being furnished with 

 feathers : the head and bill somewhat resemble 

 those of a duck ; and the external form of the 

 eye is like that of a man's, the upper eyelids 

 being adorned with lashes which are longer 

 than those on the lid below. The thighs are 

 large, fleshy, and wrinkled in the manner of a 

 net; the legs are covered before with large 

 scales ; the foot is cloven, and has two toes of 

 unequal sizes. 



These animals seem formed to live among 

 the sandy and arid deserts of the torrid zone ; 

 and in those regions they are seen in large 

 flocks, which, to the distant spectator, appear 

 like a regiment of cavalry, and have often 



