What do you think of this fact?
“Burying your head in the sand” means ignoring a problem and hoping it goes away. The role model is the ostrich. Except the ostrich doesn’t actually do that.
What really happens in the sand
Ostriches don’t build nests. Instead, they dig holes in the sand and lay their eggs in them. Both parents share the incubation and regularly turn the eggs with their beaks. To do that, the head has to go way down into the hole.
From a distance, it looks exactly as if the bird were sinking its head into the ground. On top of that, an ostrich’s head is tiny compared to its huge body. When it lowers it to graze, it seems to simply vanish.
Duck, don’t hide
When an ostrich feels threatened, it sometimes lies flat and presses its head and neck to the ground. That helps it blend in with its surroundings and makes it a harder target. Clever camouflage, but no head in the sand.
Most of the time, it picks a different strategy anyway: running. According to Science World, ostriches can sprint at up to 70 kilometers per hour and hold their top speed for up to half an hour.
Bonus fact: Ostriches lay the largest eggs of any bird and have the largest eyes of any land animal.
Where the myth comes from isn’t entirely clear. According to McGill University, it goes back to ancient Rome. The image has stuck to the bird ever since.
So the ostrich isn’t a coward, it’s a parent at work. With sand on its beak and 70 km/h in its legs.