14 
THE OSTRICH. 
almost like the quill of the porcupine. The 
plumage is generally black and Avhite ; 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 
