602 

 THE ARABIAN OSTRICH. 



S. H. Peater. 



In March 1920 Col. Sii- Arthur Wilson, then Actmg Civil Commissioner of Mes- 

 opotamia, presented the Society with the skin of an ostrich which was given 

 to him by a Chief of the Anaizah Tribe in Central Arabia. Though there are 

 several records existent, the occurrence of ostriches outside African limits is 

 not very generally known. In forwarding the skin. Col. Wilson sent us the 

 following extract from " Burckhardt's notes on Bedouins," Vol. I, which 

 contain several interesting points in connection with these birds. 



Burckhardt vmtes " These (the ostriches) inhabit the great Syrian Desert, 

 " especially the plain extending from Hauran towards the Djebel Shammar and 

 '■ Xedjd. Some of them are found in Hauran, and a few are taken almost every 

 " year, even within two daj's' journey of Damascus. The Arabs call the male 

 ''ostrich Zazillmm ; the female Reidah. The male has black feathers, with 

 " white ends, except the tail feathers, which are wholly white. But the feathers 

 "of the female are spotted grey. This bird breeds in the middle of winter 

 ■' and lays from twelve to one and tv."enty eggs. The nest (madhaJi) is generally 

 " made at the foot of some isolated hill. The eggs are placed close together 

 ' in a cncle, half buried in sand, toprotect them from rain, and a narrow trench 

 •• is drawn round, whereby the water runs off. At ten or twelve feet from this 

 " cn-cle, the female places two or three other eggs which she does not hatch, 



but leaves for the young ones to feed upon immediately after they are hatched. 



The parent birds sit on the eggs in turn ; and while one is so employed, the 



other stands keeping watch on the summit of the adjacent hUl, which circum- 

 " stances enable the Ai'abs to Idll them. When they descry an ostrich stand- 

 *' ing in this manner on a hill, they conclude that some eggs must be near ; 

 " the nest is soon found, and the ostriches fly away. The Arab then digs a 



hole in the ground near the eggs and puts his loaded gun into it, having fastened 

 " to the lock a long burning match, the gun being pointed tov/ards the eggs ; 

 "' he covers it with stones and retires. Towards evening the ostriches return, 

 '■ and not perceiving any enemy, resume their places, generally both at once 

 ■' upon the eggs ; the gun, in due time, is discharged and the Arab finds next 

 " morriing one of the ostriches, or frequently both killed upon the spot. Such 

 " is the usual method of killing these bhds, for the huntmg of them is not prac- 

 " tised in the Northern Arabian Desert. It has been supposed that the sun 

 ■' alone hatches the ostriches' eggs ; but this opmion is proved to be erroneous 

 " by the statement above given, which shows that the ostrich sits during the 

 "rainy season on its eggs, and the young ones are hatched in spring, before 

 " the sun has acquired any considerable degree of heat. 



" The inhabitants of the district called Djaf eat the ostriches' flesh, which they 

 " purchase from the Sherarat Arabs. The eggs are sold for about one shilling 

 " each ; the Ai'abs reckon them dehcious food. The towns' people hang up 

 ' ' the shells as ornaments in their rooms. Ostrich feathers are sold at Aleppo 

 " and Damascus, principally at the latter city. The people of Aleppo some- 

 " times bring home ostriches which they had killed at the distance of two or 

 " three days' jom-nies eastward. The Sherarat Arabs sell the whole skin 

 " with the feathers on it ; such a skin in the year 1810 was sold at Damascus 

 "for about ten Spanish dollars ; the skin itself is throAvn away as useless. At 

 "Aleppo (in the spring of 1811) the jjrice of ostrich feathers was from 260 

 " to 600 piastres the rotala (about £2 10s. to £6 per pound). The finest feathers 

 " are sold singly, at from one to two shillings each." 



At Col. Sn Arthur Wilson's request, the late Col. Leachman favoured us with 

 the following information in regard to the occurrence of these birds in Arabia. 

 Writing from Anah, on the 16th May 1920, Col. Leachman says " I have been 



