• Question: From an Evolutionary point of view, why do you think an ostriches eye is bigger than it's brain?

    Asked by ErmaghedScience to Matthew, Andrew on 20 Nov 2014.
    • Photo: Matthew Camilleri

      Matthew Camilleri answered on 20 Nov 2014:

      There are two parts to this questions: Why does an ostrich have big eyes? IS its brain really small? An ostrich is a big bird, and lets be honest, if I’m hungry and looking for a meal I’d rather eat an ostrich then having to catch 100 mice to get the same volume of meat. This means that an ostrich has to be alert of its surroundings and the big eyes give it just that, better vision.

      When it comes to the brain it is common to find bird brains which are smaller then mammals, but this is only possible cos they just focus their brain on sensory movements rather then other things, and therefore they do not need a large brain.

      Apart from this just because the eyes are bigger then brain does not make the brain small, it simply means it has huge eyes, which is an evolutionary adaptation to improve its vision.

    • Photo: Andrew McKinley

      Andrew McKinley answered on 20 Nov 2014:

      The bigger the eye, the more able it is to collect light, and hence the more sensitive it is, particularly in low light conditions.
      Having the big eyes means that an ostrich – not really that good at flying – can spot its predators and escape. Similar birds with smaller eyes might not be able to see this coming so easily and would then be hunted out of existence.

      Ostriches are big, but a brain’s size doesn’t have a lot to do with its “processing power”. Our brains are actually small compared to our body size, but our brains have a large surface area, (it’s all wrinkled up in there!) which is thought to be linked to our ability to use our brain.

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