Richard Pate, aged 11, of Stratford, Conn., for his question:

Is there a bird bigger than an ostrich,?

An ostrich may grow to be eight feet tall, That measurement is from the tips of his two‑toed feet to the top of his small head. He may weigh 300 pounds ‑ plumes, toes, beak and all. His powerful legs can carry him along in fifteen foot strides. And he can keep up a steady pace of 40 m.p.h.

This well‑plumed fellow is now the largest bird in the world. But this was not always so. A thousand years ago he had a larger cousin who lived in New Zealand. This was the moa bird, now extinct. The moa bird often stood nine feet tall and weighed 500 pounds.

Marco Polo of Venice explored the Orient some 200 years before Columbus discovered the Americas. He had many amazing tales to tell of ‑hid‑travels.‑ Much of his reporting was about actual events. He also retold many legends and stories that had been told to hid in far off lands. One of these stories is about an amazing bird called the Roc.

The Roc was said to be such a big bird that it could carry off an elephant in its claws. Some people called it the elephant bird. Almost everyone believe the monster bird to be a character from a fairy story.

Not so long ago, fossil birds were found on the island of Madagascar. When dive, these fellows must have weighed 1,000 pounds apiece. Imagine a bird weighing half a ton; Their fossilized bones show that the monsters must have been extinct for 7000 years or more. Hut when alive they must have filled the human family with imagination. Perhaps they gave rise to the ancient tales of the Roe. Even so, these tales and legends must have been greatly exaggerated. For the elephant bird could not fly. And even a 1,000 pound bird could not hoist up a six ton elephant.

The ostrich of today cannot fly either. Nor can the second largest bird of modern time ‑. the five foot tall emu of Australia. Nor can their South American cousin, the rhea bird, These flightless monsters are called ratite birds. Ratite is coined from an older word for raft. It refers to the shape of the breastbones of these grounded birds,. A bird built for flight must have a. keel‑shaped breastbone.

The ratite birds, it is said, descended from flying ancestors. For countless generations they lived in safe places. They had no need to fly from enemies or fly in search of food. In time they grew fat and large. They gave up trying to fly when normal weight reached 30 pounds, After that they grew still bigger.

True, the ostrich lives in the lion territory of Africa.. But he is safe there. He has wonderful eyesight and can spot his enemies from far away. He can ran away from trouble. He can also defend himself. Those legs of his pack a frightful wallop and he uses them to kick.