Do ostriches really stick their heads in the sand?
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No, an ostrich never buries its head in the sand: this action would be fatal to it in a few minutes. The legend comes from two real behaviors: it lies on the ground, stretching its neck flat to blend into the landscape, and it plunges its head into its nest to turn over its buried eggs.
Where does the confusion come from
Faced with distant danger, the ostrich adopts a camouflage posture: it flattens to the ground, neck and head extended horizontally, almost invisible in the dry vegetation of the savannah. Seen from afar, the silhouette and head disappearing into the grass may have given the illusion of a head planted in the sand.
The second behavior at the origin of the myth concerns reproduction. The female digs a shallow depression in the ground, about 30 cm deep according to the ADW, to lay her eggs, the largest in the current avian kingdom. Several times a day, the parents plunge their heads into this nest at ground level to turn the eggs and ensure uniform incubation, a gesture often observed from a distance as burying the head.
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In reality, the ostrich has no interest in stopping headlong in front of a predator. It is the largest living bird, incapable of flight but with long muscular legs: it can flee at speeds of around 70 km/h over long distances, one of the fastest gaits in the terrestrial animal world. If escape is not possible, it defends itself with powerful paw strikes, capable of seriously injuring a lion.
Misunderstood behavior, not a weakness
Far from being a passive animal, the ostrich combines exceptional visual alertness, running speed and striking power to survive in the open African environments where it lives. The myth of the hidden head reflects above all an erroneous reading, from a distance, of camouflage behaviors and parental care perfectly adapted to its environment.
