NEW YORK ZOOLOGICAL PARK. 



163 



NORTH AFRICAN OSTRICH: MALE. 



their plumes in enhancing the attractiveness of woman. 

 And surely, no plume-bearing bird ever enlisted in a better 

 cause, or on a more satisfactory basis ; for to-day the plume 

 crop is being grown and plucked and marketed with almost 

 as much certainty as the annual crop of wool. In the 

 United States, the most important plume-producing ostrich 

 farms are situated in southern California and Arizona, 

 where the industry is quite successful. So valuable are the 

 adult birds that it is possible to purchase specimens im- 

 ported from Africa for less money than would be necessary 

 to procure them in the United States. 



A full-grown male African Ostrich stands 8 feet in height, 

 and weighs about 300 pounds. Its value on arrival in New 

 York, before acclimatization and moulting into perfect plu- 

 mage, is from $200 to $250. The female lays about 90 eggs 

 in a year, each of which is equal to about 20 hen's eggs. 

 The time of incubation is about 40 days. In captivity only 

 about 60 per cent of the eggs hatch, and of those not more 

 than one-half live to attain full maturity. The plumage of 

 immature birds and adult females is gray, but that of the 

 adult male is black on the body, and white on the wings and 

 tail. 



The South African Ostrich, (Struthio australis), differs 

 from the species found in the north. The color of the 

 naked skin of its neck and thighs, and the front scales on 



