• The ostrich is the world’s largest bird, with a documented weight of 346 lbs. (157 kg), although the average is around 230 lbs. (104 kg). These flightless birds stand nearly 7 feet (2.13 m) tall, but can reach a height of 9 feet (2.75 m). Beautiful long eyelashes protect their eyes, eyes which happen to be larger than their brain! The female ostrich lays about 70 eggs a year, eggs that are 6 inches (15 cm) long, 5 inches (13 cm) wide, with a weight of 3 lbs. (1.4 kg). Although the ostrich egg is the largest of any bird, it’s the smallest egg in comparison to the size of the mother. A kiwi egg is 20% of the mother’s weight, but the ostrich egg is just 2%. It would require 24 chicken eggs to make an omelet the equivalent of one ostrich egg. This unusual bird has just two toes on each foot, but that seems to help them run at a speed of more than 40 mph (70 km/hr), with single strides reaching up to 15 feet (4.57 m)!
• You’ll want to avoid the cassowary, a large bird native to Australia and New Guinea rainforests. With 3-toed feet bearing 4-inch-long (10 cm) dagger-like claws, the cassowary is considered the most dangerous bird in the world. It’s also the second heaviest in the world, second only to its cousin, the ostrich, and has been recorded at a weight of 187 lbs. (85 kg). Just one kick can slice open its predators and it’s been known to kill a human. It’s a flightless bird, but can run over 30 miles per hour (50 km/hr) through the forest and can jump nearly 7 feet (2 m) straight up into the air. If that’s not enough, it’s also a great swimmer! They’re jet black for the most part, but their face, neck, and wattles are brightly colored, red, gold, blue, purple, or white, depending on the species. Talk about role reversal — the females are larger than the males and are more brilliant in their colors. And it’s the male’s job to sit on the nest to incubate their eggs, as long as 60 days.
• The largest flying bird in North America is the California condor, with a wingspan of up to 10 feet (3 m) from tip to tip. In the early 1980s, the population of condors fell to just 22 birds, and in 1987 they were declared extinct in the wild. Due to extensive conservation endeavors, there are now about 275 condors in the wild in California, Utah, Arizona, and Baja California. Another 160 live in captivity. This vulture species has black plumage, with a bit of white on the underside of the wings. It’s their bald head that draws the attention. The head’s skin is gray on young birds, but is bright yellow and orange on breeding adults. It can also change skin color in response to the environment. The condors enjoy dining on dead carcasses, but can survive up to two weeks without eating, by storing up to 3 pounds of meat in part of their esophagus. Their life expectancy is up to 60 years old.
• The world’s smallest bird species can be found in Cuba, the 2.4-inch-long (6.1-cm) bee hummingbird. They might be tiny, but they’re busy gathering nectar from as many as 1,500 flowers a day. Their plumage is an iridescent shiny blue. This hummingbird weighs less than a dime, and lays eggs the size of a coffee bean.
