About the Ostrich
The ostrich is the world’s largest and heaviest living bird. Though entirely flightless due to its massive body weight and lack of a keeled breastbone, it is the fastest bipedal animal on land. It boasts incredible physical traits, including the largest eyes of any land vertebrate and only two toes on each foot.
Native to the open savannas and semi-arid deserts of Africa, ostriches can grow up to 9 feet tall and weigh as much as 320 pounds. While they cannot take to the sky, they use their small wings as rudders to execute sharp turns while running. Incredibly, they can sprint at speeds up to 43 mph and maintain a steady, grueling pace of 31 mph. When faced with danger, they often use their powerful legs to deliver a devastating kick.
These birds are highly adapted to their arid habitats and can survive for days without drinking water, extracting the hydration they need from the plants, seeds, and occasional insects they eat. Interestingly, ostriches are famous for some common behavioral myths. While they are known to stretch their long necks flat against the ground to hide from predators—which makes them look like they’ve buried their heads in the sand—they never actually do so.
Suitable Weapons
Any cartridge from the .270 to the .30 caliber cartridges work well on an ostrich.
Hunting Area
You can hunt ostriches in South Africa, Namibia, Tanzania, Botswana, and Ethiopia.
You can also hunt them on some high-fence hunting preserves in Texas.
