Maternal Care in Ostriches (Struthio)

    Contrary to popular folklore, that an ostrich hides its head in the sand when danger threatens, female ostriches defending their nests show an elaborate agonistic display, including hissing and expansion and flapping of wings. Both sexes are capable of giving a powerful kick with the spurs on the feet. The theory of kin selection shows that self-sacrifice behaviors are favored, for example, when the death of a parent would save the lives of two offspring.

    The legend that ostriches "stick their heads in the sand" is first recorded in the Pliny the Elder's Natural History (77 CE). Ostriches on the African savanna feed, standing up, on vegetation and insects at ground level: seen at a distance and over a small rise in the ground, the birds were appear to have their heads below ground level. It seems likely that this was known to locals, who have told the story to "eco-tourists" since antiquity. Pliny's work is a mixture of accurate and wildly inaccurate observation and rumor, including "traveler's tales" such as this.