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Our
1st generation of Ostriches are imported from
South Africa. They are further breed and reproduced
in our farms, thus increasing the amount of ostriches
that are born and breed locally.....
It
is commonly believed that the origin of ostriches
are originally from Africa. However paleontologists
have evidence that ostriches first originated on
the Asian steppes in the Eocene Epoch (40
to 50 million years ago), ranging through Asia,
Europe and Africa. Today its range in the wild is
limited to South Africa,
where they have been commercially bred for more
than 100 years.
Ostriches
were almost extinct in the 18th century due to demand
of their feathers. Thats' why in the 19th century,
ostriches breeding began to increase. This enabled
ostriches to be domesticated thus, their feathers
can be plucked. This helped them to avoid being
hunted and killed. Love for the feathers can also
be seen In ancient times, when ostrich feathers
or plumes were often worn as a sign of nobility.
Ostrich's
products
like meats, hides (leather), and feathers
have commercial value. The meat, with a texture
and color almost similar to beef, is low in
fat, calories, and sodium. It has fewer calories,
less fat, and less cholesterol than beef,
emu, chicken, or turkey. Ostrich meat is also
a good source of iron and protein. Eggs are
emptied and the shells can be carved into
ornaments, used as containers, or made into
decorative jewelry. The ostrich farmer may
breed young stock for resale or sell eggs
for hatching.
Flightless birds
Flightless birds also know
as ratities, from the latin word for raft
(a boat without a keel). The ratities consisted
is made up of ostriches,
rheas, emus,
cassowaries, and
kiwis.
Ratities have a flat breastbone without the
keel-like structure to which flight muscles
are attached in flying birds.
A simple Comparison
Chart of Flightless birds height against
their ancestors and human.
Ostriches
Native to Africa, the ostrich, the largest
living species of bird, grow to a height of
approximately 2.4 m (8 ft) and a weight of
150 kg (330 lb). Though flightless, ostriches
can run at speeds as high as 65 km/hr (40
mph). The adaptable ostrich can be found living
in rocky mountainous areas, open savanna,
or sandy desert plains. It is omnivorous,
eating grass, the foliage of trees and bushes,
and any small invertebrate and vertebrate
animals it can chase down.
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Rhea
Rheas are generally smaller than African
ostriches and instead of two toes they have
three. The head and neck are completely feathered.
The tail is undevelop, but long feathers droop
over and cover the posterior region of the
body.
Rheas varies from palegray to brown in colors.
Like the ostrich, the males are polygamous
and hatch the eggs; several females use the
same nest and a single male may hatch 50 eggs.
Rheas run very fast on long legs and travel
in family groups of about 6 birds, except
in the mating season, when flocks of about
25 gathered. The greater rhea inhabits grassy
plains from Bolivia and Brazil to central
Argentina. The lesser rhea is found in the
high puna region of the southern Andes and
in grasslands south of the range of the greater
rhea.
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Emus
The emu, is a large, flightless bird native
to Australia. Emus roam the western half of
the continent i.e. the open plains and brush.
Excluding the ostrich, emu is the largest
of all birds, attaining a height of 1.8 m
(6 ft) and a weight of 59 kg (130 lb). The
wings of the emu are mere rudiments hidden
beneath the coarse, almost hairlike feathers
of the body.
The plumage is dull brown, darker on the head,
neck, and middle of the back, and lighter
on the undersides. The naked parts of the
head and neck are grayish-blue; the bill and
feet are brown. Emus feed mainly on roots,
fruits,
seeds, and flowers. Emus places its eggs,
dark green and around 10 cm (bout 4 inches)
long, in a scooped-out hole in the ground.
Incubation takes almost two months and done
entirely by the male, which also assumes care
of the chicks.
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Cassowaries
Cassowaries stand 1.2 to 1.8 m (about 4-6
ft) high and when frightened can run as fast
as 48 km/h (30 mph). Their inner toes bear
long, straight, knifelike nails, which are
deadly defense weapons. The loose, hairlike
body plumage is brownish-black; the head and
neck are bare and brightly colored in various
combinations of red, yellow, and blue.
The top of the head bears a large, bony crest.
Originally found only in northern Australia
and New Guinea, cassowaries were brought as
pets to New Britain, Ceram, and the Aru islands.
Unlike their relatives the emus, rheas, and
ostrich, cassowaries are birds of the forest
rather than of open plains. 3 to 6 eggs are
laid at one time and the males incubate the
eggs, which are dark green.
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kiwis
Kiwis are strictly protected and found only
in New Zealand and adjacent small islands.
Like the ostriches, kiwis are devastated in
the 19th century by the feather trade. Male
kiwis are smaller than the females of the
same species. kiwis are around 30 cm (15 inches)
to 50 cm (20 inches) long. The long slender
bill of kiwis has the nostrils near the tip,
unique among living birds. Their bodies are
chunky and their legs short but powerful,
with the three front toes armed with strong
claws. Kiwis are nocturnal (active at night).
Their eyes are tiny and their vision poor.
They search for their food (mainly worms and
other small invertebrates, seeds, and berries)
by scent, a characteristic unusual in birds.
They lack tails, and their rudimentary wings
are hidden beneath the thick plumage. Kiwi
eggs are larger in proportion to the body
size of the female than those of any other
bird-about 1/4 of the body mass. Two eggs
are sometimes laid, but in order to have body
room for a second large egg to develop, about
a month's time elapses between the laying
of the first and second. Incubation, mostly
by the male, lasts 71 to 84 days.
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