An egg-citing update on our ostriches

As keen-eyed visitors may have noticed, Mary, our female common ostrich, has been laying eggs!

Mary joined our male ostrich, Drummer, last July and since then they have been getting acquainted – resulting in some eggs being laid.

Female ostriches can lay up to 18 eggs in a season. As the eggs are laid, they’re rolled into a pile, ready to be incubated. In the wild, multiple females’ eggs would be included in the nest, but most would belong to the dominant ostrich pair in a group. When all the eggs are laid, the pair start to incubate.

Since Easter this year Mary has laid several eggs, and the pair have succeeded in rolling the eggs into a pile ready for incubation, but haven’t quite got to the incubating part yet! Both Mary and Drummer have been sitting next to, or nearby the nest, rather than sitting on top of the eggs to start incubation.

Dr Sarah Richdon, our Programme Lead for Animal Behaviour and Welfare, says ‘This is the first opportunity that both Mary and Drummer have had at Bristol Zoo Project to potentially raise young, and it’s looking like they need some time to practice.’

Mary and Drummer will have to work together to hatch their eggs and raise their young. Both female and male ostriches have their part to play in the process. Usually, females will incubate eggs during the day, and males at night.

Once they hatch, the chicks are fully feathered, weigh around 1kg and follow their parents around, pecking at the ground for food. When they first hatch they’re around the size of a chicken, but within 6 months will be as tall as their parents. They become mature and fully sized at 18 months old.

With any luck, and a bit of practice, we’re hoping to welcome chicks in the next year or two.

Common ostriches are currently classed as Least Concern by the IUCN, so are one of the few animals at Bristol Zoo Project that aren’t currently linked to conservation projects or breeding programmes.

However, the long-term aim of our work with this species is to contribute to an important breeding programme with the Critically Endangered red-necked ostrich, a sub-species of the common.

Breeding the common ostrich is the goal over the following few years, giving our keepers valuable experience in caring for ostriches and their young and supporting successful breeding.

The next step will be to bring Critically Endangered North African red-necked ostriches to the zoo, which are under a breeding programme from the European Association of Zoos and Aquariums. EAZA Captive breeding programmes are vital to maintain sustainable populations of endangered species coordinating their demographic and genetic requirements, with the ultimate aim of restoring populations in the wild.

Sheldon Wetton, Curator of Birds at Bristol Zoo Project, explained:

“The North African red-necked ostrich once had an expansive habitat across 18 African countries, however, hunting for food, egg collection and habitat destruction have rendered the animal Critically Endangered and it is now only found in six of these countries. We can work with Drummer and Mary to gain experience and understand these birds better to prepare us for the arrival of the North African red-necked ostriches in the coming years.”