Ostrich (Struthio camelus)

The ostrich is an interesting bird to say the least. Not only are they the largest living birds on the planet, they are also the fastest creature on two legs, reaching up to 70 kilometres an hour in bursts. Another fact many people are familiar with is that they lay the largest eggs of all birds, weighing in at about 1.4 kilograms (20 times the size of a chicken’s egg!). What fewer people know is that ironically, their eggs are proportionally the smallest of all birds: the eggs make up only 1-4% of the female’s body weight. It is the Kiwis from New Zealand that lay the proportionally largest eggs: their eggs can weigh a whopping 25% of the female’s body weight.