Bustard

bustard the name for birds of the genus Otis, which come in two sizes, large and little. Even the little bustard, O. tetrax, is a large bird, but the great bustard, O. tarda, is very large indeed—measuring 1 m (40") from tip of beak to end of tail, and having a wing span of around 150 cm (60").

Bustards frequent steppes and open plains, and spend more time walking than flying. Both species have wandered north to Britain and Scandinavia, but belong more to S. Europe, N. Africa, and the Near East. They have anyway become rare. Brand (1859) recalled that earlier in the 19th century these birds ‘were bred in the open parts of Norfolk and Suffolk, and were domesticated at Norwich. Their flesh was delicious, and it was thought that good feeding and domestication might stimulate them to lay more eggs; but this was not the case.’