Is it true that the eye of ostrich is more than its brain?

There is an opinion that the eye of ostrich is greater than its brain, this supposedly explains the low intellectual abilities of this bird. We decided to check if such an opinion is confirmed by scientific research.

Usually, the statement about such a ratio of the eye and brain of ostrich is found in jokes And demotivators. Also this information Found in the collections of interesting facts, social networks, publications Media And television programs. Some sites They even claim that the brain of ostrich is so small that only a quarter of his eyes is equal. That the ostrich is stupid, speaks Even the biblical book of Job (39: 14-17): “He leaves his eggs on the ground, and warms them in the sand, and forgets that the leg can crush them and the field beast can trample them; He is cruel to his children, as if not his own, and is not afraid that his work will be in vain; Because God did not give him wisdom and did not pay the point to him. ”

Rostings are the largest representatives of the class of birds. So, African ostrich Reaches 2.7 m in height, and can weigh up to 156 kg. Ostriches live in the eastern and northwestern part of the African continent, but 8 million years ago their habitat captured Vast territories: from modern China and Irkutsk to the southern regions of Ukraine and Moldova. Contrary to the established opinion, EMU that live in Australia does not relate to ostriches, they - Representatives CAZUARISE Detachment. Interestingly, the scientific name of ostrich (Strouthokamelos) from Greek translated Like a "sparrow camel."

The eyes of ostriches are really large. The vision of this size is necessary, on the one hand, to look for food for yourself, and on the other, to notice a potential threat in time. Moreover, ostrich, like other birds, has more wide Compared to the human field of view. Each eye covers about 150–170 °, while blocking the left and right fields - only 20-30%, which in total gives almost 300 ° review. 

The brain of ostrich, like the brain of mammals, consists of Of the two hemispheres, separated by a longitudinal gap. The surface of the hemispheres is even, without convolutions.

The brain has Distribute Form, therefore, for its description, scientists use two dimensions: length and width. According to scientists of the Khujun Agricultural University (Wuan, China), the brain has 59.26 mm in length and 42.30 mm in width, according to other sources - 58.48 mm and 42.63 mm, respectively. The eye of a spherical ostrich in shape with an axial length 39 mm. A ball with a diameter of 39 mm is less than the rhombus with the above length and width.

Scientists evaluate the weight of the brain of ostrich 26.34 g to 41.9 g. In academic sources, the weight of the ostrich’s eyes could not be found, the rest diverges: in some it is stated that weight It comes up to 60 g, in others Assess in 40 g. 

At the same time, ostriches still cannot be called absolutely stupid animals. The brain allows them to even remember and perform some commands, which makes them animals, capable To training. Moreover, ostriches Use Like sled animals, harnessing into a harness or simply sitting on them from above, while neither Sodla nor harnesses are used. Racing on ostriches take start in South Africa, but the most Popular Today in the southern states of the United States. 

Thus, if you count in size, the brain of ostrich on average is still larger than its eyes. However, by the mass of the eyes of this bird, most likely, a little surpasses her brain.

Most of the untruth

What do our verdicts mean?

Read on the topic:

1. Bird brains: What do we know about the intellect of birds?
2. Birds found consciousness and similar to mammals of brain architecture