c.1225, from O.Fr.
ostruce (Fr.
autruche), from V.L.
avis struthio, from L.
avis "bird" (from PIE
*awi- "bird") + L.L.
struthio "ostrich," from Gk.
strouthion "ostrich," from
strouthos melage "big sparrow." The Greeks also knew the bird as
strouthokamelos "camel-sparrow," for its long neck. Among its proverbial peculiarities are indiscriminate voracity (especially a habit of swallowing iron and stone to aid digestion), want of regard for its eggs, and a tendency to hide its head in the sand when pursued.
"Like the Austridge, who hiding her little head, supposeth her great body obscured." [1623]
Ostriches do put their heads in the sand, but ostrich farmers say they do this in search of something to eat.
[aw-strich, os-trich] 
