304 TRANSACTIONS OF THE 



[Balletin Mensuelde la Societe Imperiale Zoologiqued'Acclimatation, Paris, July, 1857. 



THE OSTRICH. 



Report, by Doctor L. A. Gosse^on the several statements from Oran^ 

 Tiaret, Sebdon, Tlemscn^Mgiers, Boghar^ Laghouat, Tebessa, and 

 from tribes of Arabs south of Algeria, along the northern boun- 

 dary of the vast sandy desert of Sahara. 



The ostriches move to the southward when the rainy season 

 sets in; if the weather is cool, or it is time to lay their eggs, they 

 move off to the warmer parts southerly. All the Saharian 

 ostriches are of one race. Their stature is smaller than others. 

 They never exceed about five feet in height, from the bottom of 

 the foot to the top of the back. The neck is nearly as much more. 

 The body nearly three feet long, by two and three-quarters broad. 

 When hatched they are about the size of our partridges. At 

 eighteen months old they are three feet high. Entire black ones 

 are very scarce in Algeria. South of Oran they are occasionally 

 found. The life of an ostrich is believed to be, by some men, 

 seven to ten years; others say twelve to fifteen; others, seventy; 

 and at Tlemsen, one hundred. 



Some think that there are more males than females. In a covey, 

 Lebdon, two-third males; Boghar, two-third females; Tlemsen, 

 the males less; Tebessa, three males to ten females. The question 

 of their monogamy and polygamy is argued still by Sebdon. 

 Monogamy in the wild state. From fall to spring is love season 

 with them here. If the season has not been fertile, love begins 

 about the end of winter. In love he is bad tempered. The 

 natives sometimes have to defend themselves with stones, sticks, 

 and even guns. And they fight one another. 



Thirty or forty of them, of both sexes, make up a troop. At 

 this season these separate; each male chooses from one to three 

 females, and goes off with them. This family live together all 

 winter. They choose their nests in sandy places, or in low ones; 

 never on high ground. They remove all pebbles from the hollow, 

 because they might break their eggs or hurt the young ones. 

 This nest is oval, more or less perfect; a sort of a ditch outside 

 protects it from water. Then they couple, and the female runs 

 to the ready-made nest, and stays on till night. The egg shell is 

 hard when first laid. Next day they couple with the second 



