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Ostrich eggs are the largest of all eggs, [4] though they are actually the smallest eggs relative to the size of the adult bird — on average they are 15 cm (5.9 in) long, 13 cm (5.1 in) wide, and weigh 1.4 kilograms (3.1 lb), over 20 times the weight of a chicken's egg and only 1 to 4% the size of the female. [5]
Masai ostrich eggs are large (grapefruit-sized) and white in color. [ 10 ] [ 18 ] They measure 14–16 cm and weigh between 1.0 and 1.6 kg. [ 19 ] Egg hatching occurs during October and November, when eastern Africa experiences brief periods of rainfall that generates edible plants that are the Masai ostriches primary food source. [ 10 ]
Ostrich eggs and meat have been used by humans for millennia. Ostrich oil is another product that is made using ostrich fat. Ostriches are of the genus Struthio in the order Struthioniformes , part of the infra-class Palaeognathae , a diverse group of flightless birds also known as ratites that includes the emus , rheas , cassowaries , kiwis ...
Ostrich eggs are vulnerable to many predators ranging from mongooses and Egyptian vultures, to hyenas. [20] Snakes of the genera Dasypeltis and Elachistodon specialize in eating eggs. Humans have a long history of both eating wild bird eggs and raising birds for farmed eggs for consumption. [citation needed]
The eggs measure about 9 by 14 cm (3.5 by 5.5 in) – only ostrich and emu eggs are larger. The male incubates those eggs for 50–52 days, removing or adding litter to regulate the temperature, then protects the chicks, which stay in the nest for about 9 months. He defends them fiercely against all potential predators, including humans.
The default colour of vertebrate eggs is the white of the calcium carbonate from which the shells are made, but some birds, mainly passerines, produce coloured eggs. The colour comes from pigments deposited on top of the calcium carbonate base; biliverdin and its zinc chelate , and bilirubin , give a green or blue ground colour, while ...
After mating, the male builds a nest where each female lays eggs. The nest is a simple scrape in the ground, lined with grass and leaves. [15] The male incubates from ten to sixty eggs. The male will use a decoy system and place some eggs outside the nest, then sacrifice these to predators so they do not attempt to get inside the nest.
The South African ostrich (Struthio camelus australis), also known as the black-necked ostrich, Cape ostrich or southern ostrich is a subspecies of the common ostrich endemic to Southern Africa. It is widely farmed for its meat, eggs and feathers.