Ostrich vs Man, Who Would Win In A Fight?
Ostriches do not usually attack humans, but because they are so protective of their nests and unpredictable, ostrich attacks and chases of people have occurred on occasion.
An ostrich attacking at full speed can be as intimidating as any other animal; an adult male ostrich can grow up to 2.8 meters (9.1 feet) tall.
and can weigh up to 140 kg.
Apart from its great size and weight, the ostrich can reach up to 65 km/h, imagine the force that can generate these large land birds with that weight and speed, a basic calculation of the force in physics is to multiply the mass by the speed.
But, the ultimate weapon of ostriches, apart from their massive size and weight, are their legs, and they are so powerful that they use them to defend themselves.
Gathering some data on the web for this topic I found some surprising facts about the force that can generate a kick of an ostrich, it is said to be so strong that it can even kill a lion.
I also read on other websites that an ostrich kick can generate a force of 2,000 pounds per square inch.
How true is all this information and how could a human facing or survive an ostrich?
How hard can an ostrich kick?
To know the possibilities that a human being has against an ostrich, it is essential to know how strong an ostrich’s kick is since this is its main defense/attack characteristic.
I would really like to give you a precise and numerical answer as to how hard an ostrich can kick, but this has not been measured, and the data that appears on the internet is totally unbelievable, and I will explain why later.
According to what I had read in the research, it is said that an ostrich kick can even kill a lion, if this is true, a human has absolutely no chance against an ostrich, but is this true?
Although the information gathered on the strength of the ostrich’s kick seems to me to be somewhat exaggerated, it cannot be totally denied, since, for a bird as heavy as an ostrich to be able to run at such high speed, it really needs extremely strong leg muscles.
And although it may seem improbable, ostriches can jump up to 1.5 meters and use their long claw on the inside toe as a powerful weapon, which makes them even more dangerous.
Is it true that the kick of an ostrich can kill a lion or a human?
Despite all the information gathered, where it is repeated over and over again that an ostrich can kill a lion and even a person with one kick, I was able to prove that this is not true.
To begin with, I could not check reliable statistics of real evidence, but the most real evidence is to see the real action of the ostrich itself kicking people and animals.
I was able to see several videos, of ostriches attacking and kicking several times different people and animals, and these people were not severely injured, nor did they lose consciousness.
There is another data on the web that assures that ostriches have a power of 2,000 pounds per square inch (141 kg per cm2), data of which there is no verification and the source is not mentioned.
If this data were taken as a reference, it could be said that the ostrich has the power to make holes in a wall with one kick, since the minimum resistance of a concrete block, for example, is 70 kg/cm2.
An ostrich does not have the strength in its kicks to create a hole in a wall, nor can it kill a human being with a kick, and certainly not a lion.
Also, the strongest human bones, such as the femur, can fracture with 160 pounds of pressure, an ostrich kicking at 2,000 pounds of pressure per square inch would be able to break all the bones in an area with a single kick, which is unrealistic.
Anyway, I don’t want to underestimate too much the power of a wild animal, this is taking a subjective analysis and trying to avoid repeating any data I find on the web.
The way an ostrich can attack a human being is by using kicks, but it will also use its weight advantage to knock the person to the ground, and then on the ground, it will start stomping on the person.
Obviously, due to the great weight of an ostrich, you could result in broken ribs, and even the large claws could tear parts of your skin in a wild attack.
With everything I just said, I’m not saying that you should underestimate the kick of an ostrich, those birds have feet that look like dinosaurs, I just landed things a bit to their place.
The powerful legs of ostriches are more effective as a flight/defense mechanism than as an attack mechanism.
In the end, I will leave several videos where you can appreciate, both the ostrich kicking speed, as well as ostriches attacking and kicking people.
What to do in a fight against an ostrich?
A human being doesn’t stand a chance against an ostrich in a hand-to-hand fight, too much difference in size and weight.
The main reason for an ostrich to attack in most cases is to defend its territory or nest, so it will only chase the opponent with the intention of making it “leave” its space.
Back away as fast as you can and try not to fall to the ground, some advise you to drop to the ground in case you see an ostrich running at full speed towards you.
That may work, only if the ostrich is running at full speed towards you since there is no way you will be able to overcome its speed, but if you notice that the ostrich is coming violently towards you and you have a chance to retreat, do it,
If you fall to the ground or wait until the ostrich is in front of you, it will use its weight and physical advantage to knock you off balance and throw you to the ground, from there it will have all the advantage to stomp and kick you.
Move away from his area as fast as you can, if you are in the middle of the attack, cover with your hands and elbows the whole area of your head, face, and eyes, a possible kick in your face could be a game over.
The weak points of an ostrich are its eyes and neck, but the probability that you will hurt those parts is minimal, the best you can do is to keep your distance and retreat as fast as you can from the ostrich’s territory.
