Ralph the Psychic Ostrich: Lost and Nearly Found

By Leslie Brown

A female ostrich can determine her eggs among others in a communal nest.

"My egg! My egg is gone!" said Marge.

When we last left Ralph, he and his love interest, Marge, were investigating the communal hen's nest where she discovered that one of her eggs was missing. With his intense homing ability, Ralph thought he "heard" that it was the coyote that stole it, but he was unsure of his psychic abilities. He was surprised and angry that the coyote could have gotten the egg and worse than that, he hadn’t picked up on the coyote’s thoughts in time to prevent the theft.

Ostriches can sense predators, such as coyotes, from far away. While the race around the obstacle course was going on, nobody noticed the crafty coyote skulking along the fence clear across the pasture.

Just as Marge and Ralph started looking for the egg, the large rooster Diego came to inspect the situation.

"What is all of this fuss about?” Diego squawked. “What is that hen looking for? What’s the story with all the other hens milling about? Is something missing?" he rattled off question after question.
Ralph began to explain, but Diego pushed roughly past him and confronted Marge. In a much softer tone, he asked "What are you looking for?"

"My egg!" she said tearfully. "Can you help me find it?"

Ralph bristled and thought to himself, I know where the egg is. That coyote found it—I’m sure I heard his cunning thoughts as he ran nearby. Even though I couldn’t stop him, I know his nature and I’m sure the egg is with him or he ate it already.

Coyotes usually hunt at night, being nocturnal creatures, but this one was quite hungry, and he was thinking that even though the birds were tough and fast, the eggs were easy pickings. The shells of the eggs were hard, and the eggs themselves were heavy. But if he was very fast and very careful, he could sneak off to the nest and take one of the eggs. An ostrich egg was so large that it would make a tasty meal or two. There was nobody sitting on the eggs at the moment. The hens were all busy singing.
So, nobody noticed when the coyote grabbed the egg and made off with it. He had to carry it in his jaws very carefully.

As the other hens gathered in a cluster around the nest, they continued to sing. Ralph was surprised by the sudden distraction. He listened closely as they tapped their two-clawed feet. In the distance he heard the sound of the ranch hands beating a drum, as they seemed to be letting off steam after their dinner.

The ostriches stepped forward to sing the tune, "The Hens Come Marching In," to the faint rat tat tat of the drums.

Overcome with emotion, Marge stopped looking for the egg and began to sob as she listened to the flock of hens.

Diego moved closer to Marge and said, "Wipe your big lovely eyes and sing. You sure look like you could belt out a tune."

Ralph squirmed with jealously as he heard the rooster flatter his hen. The words were one thing, but Ralph clearly knew what the rooster was thinking, and he felt even worse knowing Diego’s intentions. Diego wanted to help Marge find an egg that Ralph knew was already with the coyote. Diego wasn't a shy ostrich, and he was quickly moving in on Marge.

Ralph decided to take action. He turned toward the pushy rooster and spoke curtly. "Let the hens sing without her. I know where her egg is." He turned to Marge and spoke gently.

"Your egg isn't lost," he said to her. "The coyote stole it."

Just as he told her the news, the hens began to sing even louder. They circled around Marge, trying to console her while she cried. Diego pretended to listen to the singing, but secretly he was hatching a plan to get Ralph out of the picture. Like Ralph, he was a Redneck rooster, and was very aggressive.
"Marge, let's go for a run,” Diego offered. “Let's get away from here and all this noise. I know a place where there’s open space and lots of other animals around to watch. It's a safe place where we can get to know each other better."

Even though the singing hens drowned out his words, Diego’s thoughts were clear to Ralph.
"Leave her alone!" Ralph squawked at the top of his voice. "Let her sing. It'll take her mind off the egg. She doesn’t need your help."

"How do you know what's good for her?" Diego squawked back. "Can you read her mind?"

Ralph laughed nervously to himself. If only he knew, he thought. I can hear her just like she was talking to me—but I can't tell him that. He wouldn't believe me.

Marge listened to the two roosters squawking at each other, and then she lifted one of her knobby legs in the air dramatically, ready to kick.

"Stop it, you two! I'm a mother and I've just lost my chick. Take your arguments and beat it. Leave me alone and let the hens sing. You're not helping."

With that, Marge strutted over to the hens and started to sing with them, "The Hens Come Marching In." She was feeling the girlish camaraderie of all the hens singing in harmony, and it was helping to ease her wilted spirit. There will be more eggs, she consoled herself.

Ralph was suddenly overwhelmed by the thoughts of the singing hens. They were crowding his brain. He knew he had to do something. He must confront the coyote.

But it was time to face off with Diego, and he decided to take him to his obstacle course on other side of the ranch and wear him down. He would leave Marge alone for now, and they could all call it a day.

(To be continued…)

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