Ostrich Horse
From Avatar Wiki, the Avatar: The Last Airbender database
Ostrich Horses are brown, bipedal, bird like creatures approximately ten feet tall. They have two toes facing forward and one facing backward. They have wide flat tails and short, stubby wings that are most likely incapable of flight. Their heads and necks are equine, but their mouths are avian. Ostrich Horses can also jump to extremely high levels and and capable of running along vertical surfaces, even when carrying soldiers in full armor. Ostrich Horses have been known to buck and kick their riders and nearby bystanders when startled or agitated.
The Ostrich Horse is an extremely useful animal to the people of the Earth Kingdom, especially the Earth Kingdom soldiers. Bearing the name of two mountable animals, the ostrich horse is the main mount of the Earth Kingdom. Highly trained ostrich horses are even equipped with armor and used for battles by the Earth Kingdom armies. They are used as calvary for the the Earth Kingdom. Ostrich horses appear in body armor that covers their head, neck and part of their sides. This docile creature is a lot like our version of a horse, used for transportation and to carry supplies, etc. They can be equipped with a saddle and can be used to pull carriages, etc. It is unknown what happened to Zuko's after he left with Azula at the end of Book 2.
The Ostrich Horse first appeared in "Winter Solstice Part 1: The Spirit World"
[edit] Connection
The ostrich horse as its name indicates is a cross between an ostrich and a horse. The body of the creature seems to resemble the ostrich while its neck and head resemble the horse. They also strongly resemble prehistoric 'terror birds' such as the diatryma, as well as the extinct Giant Moa (Dinornis giganteus) of New Zealand. Their appearance and usefulness is similar to the Chocobo from the Final Fantasy series. They may have been based on the Horseclaws Kai and Kui from Nauiscaä of the Valley of the Wind by Hayo Miyazaki (both a Manga series and an Anime movie as the creators of Avatar, Michael Dante DiMartino, Bryan Konietzko, are known to be great admirers of Miyazaki's work. They're also similar to the the hawkstrider in World of Warcraft.
[edit] See Also
