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The ostriches display some curious behavior
1 Jan 2010

We have recently noticed that two of our female ostriches have taken to guarding the gates into the Arabian Wildlife Park.

These ostriches can be found at most hours of the day waiting by the gate for the guests as they arrive into the park in aboard the Nature & Wildlife vehicles.   They are a favourite with visitors to Desert Islands because they are very curious and like to get a close look.   They will often walk over, poke their heads into the back of the vehicle and pose for a few photos before heading back to their regular routine. 

We have nine Somali Ostrich(Struthio camelus) in the Desert Islands Arabian Wildlife Park . This is an African species and the closest living relative of the Arabian Ostrich (Struthio camelus syriacus). The Arabian subspecies once occurred across all Arabia but became extinct in the 1950’s mainly as a result of hunting. 

The ostrich is the world’s largest bird standing 7-9 feet tall. It cannot fly but can escape predators by running at speeds of up to 70 km per hour.  They have two clawed toes on each foot and can protect themselves with powerful kicks that can kill predators as large as a lion, thus making them one of the most dangerous animals located in the Arabian Wildlife Park.

Our ostriches in the Arabian Wildlife Park have not bred yet but hopefully we will see some mating displays, nesting and chicks next year.  A single ostrich egg weighs about the same as 24 chicken eggs!

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