We Still Have A Long Way To Go

[Tartan Hiker]

This thread should win some kind of award for getting so far off topic.


And I prefer Moose to all the afore-mentioned ungulates. Now that is some fine eating!

[Mike_Oettle]

Bugbear, you still seem to be taking the much maligned ostrich too lightly.
Have you noticed the powerful thigh muscles it has, and the sharp toenail?
When it lifts its leg up and brings the toe down on a standing human, it can rip the body right open.
And heaven help you if you find a male ostrich on his “knees” (actually his ankles) waving his wings and his head from side to side. This is a mating dance, and it is followed by one of only two subsequent actions: mating with a female, or attacking a perceived enemy. If you are in front of the bird, without a solid fence between you, you will be the next unfortunate who crossed a male ostrich. RIP.
And if you try to run, it can outrun you. A speed of 60 miles an hour (100km/h) comes easily to him.
I have just paid the ostrich a tribute by designing a pair of tartans on Scotweb that reflect the colouring, respectively, of the cock and hen ostrich.
The male is very showy with his black and white feathers; the alpha male even more so when in top condition, as his beak and “shins” (actually his metatarsals) are bright pink. (This is the Southern African ostrich – in the Saharan ostrich, the pink extends all the way down the neck, and all the way up the legs.)
The female is grey, and while she has white tail feathers and wing plumes, they have black bars across them.
Pink is a colour usually associated either with femininity or effeminacy. In this case, it is a sign of a strong heterosexual masculinity.
And in closing: don’t believe the story that the ostrich buries its head in the sand to avoid detection.
Its neck and head are sand-coloured. When it sees that it is better to conceal itself than to run, it lies flat on the ground, with its neck flat as well.
Many observers have mistakenly believed that the head was under the ground, when in fact the bird was giving them the evil eye.
Regards,
Mike

[Bugbear]

Fair enough.

Although, in my own defense, I was quoting The ever famous Scottish explorer and missionary, David Livingstone. And I also included a quote where he described a South African garment as a kilt.

[Mike_Oettle]

Yes, I noticed the Livingstone quote. But then we know him well in my part of the world.
In fact, the clinic where my wife works is on the grounds of Livingstone Hospital. The explorer stayed in Bethelsdorp (a few miles up the road from the hospital) after landing in Algoa Bay, while he organised wagons for his trek to Kuruman.
And once he had arrived in Kuruman, he married his boss’s daughter, Mary Moffat . . . who stayed behind with the children when he went off exploring.
Regards,
Mike