Misconception #3: Ostriches Bury their Head in Sand when Scared

Howdie Steemians,

So our 3rd article in the series of misconceptions is a myth as old as the Roman Empire.

The myth is actually attributed to "Pliny the Elder", also known as "Gaius Plinius Secundus", who is a Roman author, philosopher, and army commander through the era 23-79 AD, and who wrote:

Imagine, when they have thrust their head and neck into a bush, that the whole of their body is concealed.

Apparently that statement went "viral" across the time and ages, and became a known "MYTH".

So. "Ostriches Bury their Head in Sand when Scared". WRONG.

Why would Pliny the Elder, and people afterwards come to think that?

Actually there is a good explanation to this misconception.

Ostriches have tiny heads. And very often, ostriches pick up sand and pebbles, which they swallow to aid them grinding food in their stomach.
Ostriches also dig shallow holes to place their eggs within, and they actually drop their heads down to these holes to turn the eggs few times within the day.

If spotted from a distance, those behaviors would definitely cause someone to consider they are actually burying their heads in the sand.

But, truth of the matter is that they are simply not doing that, for several reasons:

First, burying their heads into sand holes out of fear, would actually cause them to suffocate.
Second, if you were to escape a threat, you would probably run for your life, right? so would ostriches. They are in fact quite the good runners; they can reach speeds of up to 70 kms (43 miles) per hour. If you can run this fast, would you stick my head in the sand? Don't think so.
Finally , if cornered, or unable to run due to injury, ostriches tend to lay down their heavy bodies flat on the ground. Might be another source of this illusion? See image below - does somehow make you think it has its head buried in the sand. It simply isn't.

Hope you enjoyed our journey debunking yet another misconception!

If you liked this post, you might want to check out my earlier posts from the Misconceptions series:

Misconception #1: @mcfarhat/humans-have-way-more-than-5-senses
Misconception #2: @mcfarhat/misconception-2-water-is-a-good-conductor-of-electricity

Thank you for stopping by!

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