Open main menu
Home
Random
Recent changes
Special pages
Community portal
Preferences
About Wikipedia
Disclaimers
Incubator escapee wiki
Search
User menu
Talk
Dark mode
Contributions
Create account
Log in
Editing
Common ostrich
(section)
Warning:
You are not logged in. Your IP address will be publicly visible if you make any edits. If you
log in
or
create an account
, your edits will be attributed to your username, along with other benefits.
Anti-spam check. Do
not
fill this in!
===Feeding=== They mainly feed on seeds, shrubs, grass, fruit, and flowers;<ref name="Davies"/><ref name=Perrins2/> occasionally they also eat insects such as [[locust]]s, small reptiles such as lizards, and animal remains left by carnivorous predators.<ref name="Donegan 2002"/> Lacking teeth, they swallow pebbles that act as [[gastrolith]]s to grind food in the [[gizzard]]. When eating, they will fill their [[gullet]] with food, which is in turn passed down their esophagus in the form of a ball called a [[Bolus (digestion)|bolus]]. The bolus may be as much as {{cvt|210|mL}}. After passing through the neck (there is no [[Crop (anatomy)|crop]]) the food enters the [[gizzard]] and is worked on by the aforementioned pebbles. The gizzard can hold as much as {{cvt|1300|g}}, of which up to 45% may be sand and pebbles.<ref name=Perrins2/> Common ostriches can go without drinking for several days, using [[metabolic water]] and moisture in ingested plants,<ref name=Maclean/> but they enjoy liquid water and frequently take baths where it is available.<ref name="Donegan 2002"/> They can survive losing up to 25% of their body weight through [[dehydration]].<ref name=Perrins3/>
Edit summary
(Briefly describe your changes)
By publishing changes, you agree to the
Terms of Use
, and you irrevocably agree to release your contribution under the
CC BY-SA 4.0 License
and the
GFDL
. You agree that a hyperlink or URL is sufficient attribution under the Creative Commons license.
Cancel
Editing help
(opens in new window)