Somali ostrich
Struthio molybdophanes Reichenow, 1883
The somali ostrich (Struthio molybdophanes) is a species in the family Struthionidae, order Struthioniformes. Recorded adults weigh 100 kg to 115 kg and live up to 50 years. Its IUCN Red List status is Vulnerable.
Quick facts about the somali ostrich
- Weight
- 100 kg – 115 kgsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Lifespan
- 50 yearssrc for Lifespan
- Diet
- Omnivoresrc for Diet
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- shrublandsrc for Habitat
- Egg incubation
- 45 dayssrc for Egg incubation
- Young per litter or clutch
- 8.67src for Young per litter or clutch
- Age at maturity
- 2.74 years – 3.5 yearssrc for Age at maturity
- Litters or clutches a year
- 1.5src for Litters or clutches a year
- Lifestyle
- Terrestrialsrc for Lifestyle
- Migration
- Sedentarysrc for Migration
- Conservation status
- Vulnerable (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
Where does the somali ostrich live?
Not recorded
What is the somali ostrich?
The Somali ostrich (Struthio molybdophanes), also known as the blue-necked ostrich, is a large flightless bird native to the Horn of Africa. It is one of two living species of ostriches, the other being the common ostrich. It was also previously considered a subspecies of the common ostrich, but was identified as a distinct species in 2014. For a long time, Somalis partially domesticated some of these ostriches.
From the Wikipedia article “Somali ostrich” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Somali_ostrich&oldid=1380760486), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is the somali ostrich endangered?
The somali ostrich is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List: it faces a high risk of extinction in the wild.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Vulnerable species.
How is the somali ostrich classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classAves
- orderStruthioniformes
- familyStruthionidae
- genusStruthio
- SpeciesStruthio molybdophanes Reichenow, 1883
Synonyms Struthio camelus molybdophanes
Other names and names in other languages (43)
- Blue-necked ostrichEnglish
- SOOSEnglish
- نعامة صوماليةArabic
- نعامة ذات العنق الأزرقArabic
- avestruz somalinaAsturian
- Сомалийски щраусBulgarian
- Struskañval SomaliaBreton
- Estruç somaliCatalan
- estruç de SomàliaCatalan
- pštros somálskýCzech
- estrys SomaliaWelsh
- SomalistrudsDanish
- SomalistraußGerman
- somalia strutoEsperanto
- Avestruz somalíSpanish
- Avestruz de SomaliaSpanish
- somaali jaanalindEstonian
- شترمرغ سومالیPersian
- somalianstrutsiFinnish
- Autruche de SomalieFrench
- Ostrais ShomálachIrish
- יען סומליHebrew
- kéknyakú struccHungarian
- szomáliai struccHungarian
- Struzzo somaloItalian
- ソマリダチョウJapanese
- ソマリアダチョウJapanese
- Somalinis strutisLithuanian
- Somalische StruisvogelDutch
- somalistrutsNorwegian
- struś szaroskóryPolish
- avestruz-somaliPortuguese
- Сомалийский страусRussian
- pštros sivonohýSlovak
- somalski nojSlovenian
- Goronyo soomaaliyeedSomali
- Somalijski nojSerbian
- somaliastrutsSwedish
- นกกระจอกเทศโซมาลีThai
- Somali DevekuşuTurkish
- страус сомалійськийUkrainian
- 灰颈鸵鸟Chinese
- 索馬利亞鴕鳥Chinese
Relatives of the somali ostrich
Other species in the same genus Struthio.
Common ostrich
Struthio camelus
CompareSomali ostrich vs Common ostrichSomali ostrich vs Struthio kakesiensis
Common questions
Answered only where our data holds the answer.
How big is the somali ostrich?
An adult somali ostrich weighs 100 kg – 115 kg, according to values recorded on Wikidata.
Is the somali ostrich endangered?
The somali ostrich is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, meaning it faces a high risk of extinction in the wild.
How long does the somali ostrich live?
The somali ostrich has a recorded lifespan of 50 years.
What kind of animal is the somali ostrich?
The somali ostrich (Struthio molybdophanes) belongs to the family Struthionidae in the order Struthioniformes.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · CC0 1.0 · E096-269
Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1 - AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds · CC BY 4.0 · v7
Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7 - Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Somali ostrich (Struthio molybdophanes). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/somali-ostrich
“Somali ostrich (Struthio molybdophanes).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/somali-ostrich.
@misc{somali_ostrich_2026,
title = {Somali ostrich (Struthio molybdophanes)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/somali-ostrich},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}