Very often, the size of eggs laid by birds is not proportional to the size of the bird itself. Usually large eggs with a large volume of nutritious yolk are laid by those species in which the chicks hatch relatively developed and able to take care of themselves almost immediately. From small eggs, chicks are born helpless and weak.

ostrich chicks

The ostrich chick shows strength even in the egg. He breaks through a thick shell for an hour, resting his feet on both ends of the egg and pecking with his beak until a hole appears. Having made several such holes, he hits the shell with the back of his head, while getting a hematoma, but achieving his goal.

Ostriches emerge from the egg sighted and active, weighing up to 1.2 kg. The next day, they are able to travel with their parent in search of food, and at the age of one month they can run at a decent speed - 50 km / h. Interestingly, ostrich chicks from different groups when they meet, they can mix, and there is no way to separate them. The parents fight for the chicks and the winners take care of the whole group.

Ostriches lifestyle

An adult has a height of up to 250 cm and a weight of about 150 kg. It has a bare long neck and a head with large eyes.

Ostriches have underdeveloped wings on their backs, only two fingers on their feet, one of which contains a semblance of a horny hoof at the end. The blows of a powerful ostrich leg are terrible even for lions, if these birds are guarding their territory.

Usually, in case of danger, they take to flight, making huge three-four-meter steps at a speed of about 70 km / h. As a rule, ostriches are kept in small families. This is a kind of harem with one male, four or five females and chicks.

Ostriches feed on plant foods, but sometimes they eat insects and small animals. At a young age, ostriches eat animal food. Ostriches do not have teeth, so they swallow stones, pieces of wood and other objects to grind and digest food in the stomach. The life expectancy of an ostrich is about the same as that of a human - 70 years.

ostrich eggs

The male forms a pair with one female from the harem, with whom he then incubates the chicks. The rest of the females lay their eggs in a hole about 60 cm deep, which the male has prepared. Straw-yellow, white or dark green eggs weighing 1.5-2 kg in length reach 15 - 21 cm. The clutch may contain from 15 to 60 eggs.

Incubation lasts from 35 to 45 days. Many embryos die from hypothermia, as they are often left unattended. The ostriches break the spoiled eggs, and the flies that flock to them serve as animal food for the hatched chicks.

There are ostrich farms where birds are raised for their meat, feathers and eggs. Thanks to the thick shell, eggs do not spoil for three months, and can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 6 months. The taste of ostrich eggs is reminiscent of chicken.

Everyone is used to the fact that it is birds that carry eggs, but this is not so. They are also deposited by some amphibians and reptiles. Eggs not only have a variety of shapes, but also the size, color, and gestation period.

The most delicious eggs

Eggs are traditionally used in cooking. But the most tender, dietary, and most importantly, delicious eggs are quail eggs. It is a delicacy recognized as such throughout the world. Although it is impossible not to notice that everyone decides for himself which eggs seem to be the most delicious for him.

Quail eggs have been eaten since ancient times, they are mentioned in the papyri of the Egyptians, as well as in ancient recipes of traditional Chinese medicine. Quail eggs are eaten not only because of their taste, they are hypoallergenic and very useful, for example, they contain two and a half times more vitamins than chicken eggs.

The largest bird eggs

The size of an egg is not always related to the size of the bird that lays it. It also depends on what supply of nutrients is needed for the development of the embryo. Birds that are able to take care of themselves immediately after birth develop in large eggs. But the birds, which after the appearance are completely helpless, develop in small eggs.

Everyone knows that ostriches are huge birds. Like all birds, they lay eggs, which can be called the largest.

With a diameter of fifteen centimeters, the egg reaches a length of twenty centimeters. If we compare it with a chicken egg, then the volume of an ostrich egg exceeds the volume of a chicken one twenty times. The thickness of the shell is only one and a half millimeters, but it has unprecedented strength. Comparing the size of an egg to that of an ostrich, the eggs don't seem all that big.

It is known about the Rukh bird that lived in prehistoric times, which lived in Madagascar. She was also called the "Big Elephant Bird". Ostrich eggs next to her eggs would appear small. Scientists have proven that they were about twenty-six centimeters in diameter, and their dyne was about thirty-three centimeters. The volume of such an egg was eight liters, which is six times larger than an ostrich egg, and one hundred and fifty times larger than a chicken one. Today, only a few copies of Roc eggs have survived.

It is impossible not to say about the size of the eggs of the largest birds - emperor penguins. Their eggs weigh four hundred and fifty grams, with a length of twelve and a diameter of nine centimeters.

For comparison with the largest eggs in the world, you can give the size of the eggs that the smallest bird lays - the hummingbird. Her egg is only six millimeters long, which is about the size of a pea. More information about the largest birds can also be found on the website.

The most beautiful eggs

It is difficult to say unequivocally which eggs are the most beautiful. The coloring largely depends on whether the laid eggs are in sight or well hidden. So, in birds nesting in hollows, the eggs are usually light-colored, they do not need disguise. These are owls and woodpeckers. But sandpipers make nests in the sand, so their eggs are difficult to see among stones, branches and sand due to their protective coloration. Their eggs are brown-olive. Protective coloration is also inherent in nightjar eggs.

Sometimes the eggs of open nesting birds do not match the colors at all. environment. These are the eggs of the song thrush. They are sky blue in color and have small dark brown spots on their eggs. Very beautiful eggs and in such a bird as fieldfare. They are green with reddish spots.

largest chocolate egg

It is interesting to learn about such a record holder among eggs as a chocolate egg. The largest was the one that was made on Easter Sunday in one of the Argentine cities in 2012.

Its weight was over four tons. Its height is eight and a half, and its width is five meters. To hold the chocolate, a wooden frame was previously made. Confectioners were engaged in making eggs and spent more than two weeks on it. After the world record was set by representatives of the Guinness Book of Records, the participants of the festival ate it.

This egg was larger than another chocolate egg that was made in Belgium. Its height was eight meters thirty-two centimeters.

Who lays the biggest eggs in the world?

Eggs are laid not only by birds, but also by snakes, crocodiles, turtles, echidnas, platypuses. The largest eggs are those laid by African ostriches.

The weight of each egg reaches one and a half kilograms, and the length is twenty centimeters. However, an ostrich egg, relative to the volume of the bird itself, is considered to be almost the smallest. Even the pygmy hummingbird lays eggs that, in comparison with its volume, are larger than those of an ostrich in a similar comparison.

But the kiwi bird lays eggs that correspond to twenty-six percent of the weight of the bird itself. This bird weighs about one and a half kilograms, and its egg reaches five hundred grams. This is an incredibly huge egg size in relative comparison. For clarity, we can give the following example: if people had a similar proportion, a woman would give birth to a child whose weight would correspond to the weight of a seven-year-old person.
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Usually, the larger the bird, the larger the egg it lays, but the size of the eggs is not always related to the size of its "parents". The size of the egg depends on the amount of food needed to feed the growing embryo until it hatches from the egg. Birds that are able to take care of themselves almost immediately after hatching from an egg develop into large eggs that have enough a large number of nutritious yolk so that the chick hatches already sufficiently developed. The chicks hatching blind and helpless are born from small eggs, in which the supply of food is insufficient for their full development.

Not all bird eggs are similar in shape to chicken ones: some birds lay oblong, round and even pear-shaped eggs. Eggs laid in high places are usually shaped to prevent them from rolling as much as possible. As for the size of the eggs, the champion here is the ostrich. An ostrich egg can be 15-17 cm long and 13-15 cm in diameter, occupying the same volume as 12-18 chicken eggs! But ostrich eggs are the largest among the eggs that are laid by living birds. In ancient times, there were birds, next to whose eggs, ostrich eggs would have seemed tiny. We are talking about the prehistoric legendary Roc bird, which was found in Madagascar. The egg shell of this bird, found by scientists, gives an idea of ​​the size of the eggs themselves. They reached 33 cm in length and 23–26 cm in diameter. The volume of such an egg was equal to 8 liters, which is 6 times more than that of an ostrich egg and 150 times more than that of a chicken!

And the smallest testicles are hummingbirds. Some varieties of hummingbirds lay eggs that are only 6 mm long.

Everything about everything. Volume 3 Likum Arkady

Which bird lays the largest eggs?

Usually, the larger the bird, the larger the egg it lays, but the size of the eggs is not always related to the size of its "parents". The size of the egg depends on the amount of food needed to feed the growing embryo until it hatches from the egg. Birds that are able to take care of themselves almost immediately after hatching develop into large eggs that contain enough nutritious yolk so that the chick hatches already sufficiently developed. The chicks hatching blind and helpless are born from small eggs, in which the supply of food is insufficient for their full development.

Not all bird eggs are similar in shape to chicken ones: some birds lay oblong, round and even pear-shaped eggs. Eggs laid in high places are usually shaped to prevent them from rolling as much as possible. As for the size of the eggs, the champion here is the ostrich. An ostrich egg can be 15-17 cm long and 13-15 cm in diameter, occupying the same volume as 12-18 chicken eggs! But ostrich eggs are the largest among the eggs that are laid by living birds. In ancient times, there were birds, next to whose eggs, ostrich eggs would have seemed tiny. We are talking about the prehistoric legendary Roc bird, which was found in Madagascar. The egg shell of this bird, found by scientists, gives an idea of ​​the size of the eggs themselves. They reached 33 cm in length and 23–26 cm in diameter. The volume of such an egg was equal to 8 liters, which is 6 times more than that of an ostrich egg and 150 times more than that of a chicken!

And the smallest testicles are hummingbirds. Some varieties of hummingbirds lay eggs that are only 6 mm long.

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