Ostriches do not lay eggs throughout the year like chickens do. They have a specific breeding season that starts in June/July every year and the birds will lay one egg every second day. Once they have laid enough eggs to cover with their bodies and wings they will start incubating them.
(See pictures of all-star animal dads.) But in all ratites aside from ostriches, only the male cares for the offspring. In ostriches, each male has a primary female who takes turns incubating eggs with him, even though other females will lay eggs, potentially from different males, in the same nest.
Ostriches are known to consume their own eggs for a variety of reasons, including as a source of nutrition and to recycle calcium and other nutrients. In the wild, ostriches often lay their eggs in communal nests, where multiple females lay their eggs in the same nest.
Ostriches lay between 7 and 10 eggs per year. The breeding season is between March and September. The eggs are laid in a communal nest. Usually the dominant female of the group lays her eggs in the center, and the other female ostriches lay theirs around the outside.
Lifespan: In the wild, ostriches live 30 to 40 years. But in captivity, ostriches have been known to live until their 70.
Ostrich eggs are expensive, relative to chicken eggs. The average ostrich egg price is around $30. Many places do not sell edible ostrich eggs.
Ostriches Co-parent — the female will sit on the eggs during the day, and the males will at night. The female's light coloring helps her blend into the sand better during the day, while the male's darker coloring offers nighttime protection of the nest.
Adults show them how to eat and graze for foods on the ground. During this time, the chicks are vulnerable and need protection from their parents. The adult ostriches cover the chicks with their wings when it is very hot or when it rains. Adults also defend the chicks against predators.
Ostrich eggs have a richer, more buttery taste, which is described as more intense than the taste of a chicken egg. Some people even describe the taste as “gamey”.
Ostriches have strong family bonds. “When the chicks are born, both parents will stand over them all day long, spreading their wings to create some shade from the African sun.” The parents stay with their brood for up to 7 months, at which point the young birds are 6 feet tall and large enough to protect themselves.
It is believed that ostrich eggs emit an odor that can not be smelled by humans, but detestable to insects… particularly spiders. In Turkey, ostrich eggs are currently used in greenhouses and in food storage areas in hopes that insects and spiders will be repelled. Ostrich eggs can weigh between 3 – 5 lbs.
Ostriches dig shallow holes in the sand to serve as nests for their eggs. The ostrich will use its beak several times a day to turn the eggs in the nest, creating the illusion of burying its head in the sand.
Young ostriches have a very low survival rate.
In captivity, only about half of eggs hatch, and only half of the hatchlings reach a year of age. In the wild survival is even less.
But things are a little different when you rear ostriches. Amorous ostriches have been falling for their human keepers instead of each other, researchers have found.
Campylobacter jejuni and Chlamydia psittaci are occasionally reported, mainly in young ostriches, but both remain a diagnostic challenge. Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever is transmitted to domestic animals including ostriches, principally by ticks of the genus Hyalomma.
In a single season, males will mate with multiple females, and females will mate with multiple males. Though the other females in the group will also mate with the male, he only forms a life-long mating pair with one "dominant" female.
Ostrich brains are as big as a walnut and smaller than their eyes. They are not particularly intelligent, but with the largest eyeball of any bird, they can see as far as 2.2 miles (3.5 km).
Wild ostriches become sexually mature at 4–5 years of age (Reiner, 1995). Farmed females lay their first eggs at the age of 2–2.5 years, and males reach sexual maturity at the age of 3 years. Under natural conditions, a female ostrich lays 12–18 eggs.
Biology. The female common ostrich lays her fertilized eggs in a single communal nest, a simple pit, 30 to 60 cm (12–24 in) deep and 3 m (9.8 ft) wide, scraped in the ground by the male.
The Vault – Hastings Ostrich Farm & Australian Gift shop
Ostrich meat, ostrich mettwursts and ostrich eggs for eating are also available. In addition, ostrich goods including dusters, boas, feather handbags, plumes and ostrich egg shells are available.
An ostrich chick from 30–60 days old costs around $525, according to ostrichgrowers.com, appreciating to almost twice that after 90 days. Yearlings run about $2500/bird, with adult birds running from $7500 to over $10000.
This abundant marbling of grain-fed beef produces a rich flavor. Grass-fed beef has a richer, nuttier flavor. Ostrich tastes similar to grass-fed beef but resembles low-fat game meats like venison.