Ostrich swerves in front of cars as it races along a highway in China [VIDEO]

This is the moment an ostrich sped down a motorway in northern China after it fell out of a truck.

Video shows the flightless bird, which can reach speeds of 45 miles an hour, swerving cars as it races between the lanes on the Rongcheng–Wuhai Expressway in the city of Tianjin on January 3.

A bystander called traffic officers to say an ostrich as big as a car was ‘rushing’ down the highway, local media reports said. 

The ostrich swerves between lanes as it rushes down the highway in Tianjin, northern China

The powerful bird was then taken to an enclosed courtyard nearby, where it was reunited with its owner.

He was transporting the ostriches to Jizhou District and lost the rogue runner after cargo box doors became unfastened when he hit a bump, according to local news site Sina. 

Ostriches can grow as tall as 9 feet and their deadly kicks have been known to kill lions as well as other bigger predators. 

The heavy hitter can weigh as much as 330 pounds, and were listed as one of the most dangerous birds in the world by encyclopaedia Britannica. 

The flightless bird, which can reach speeds of 45 miles per hour, races down the Rongcheng–Wuhai Expressway

The ostrich runs down the road and in-between cars after falling out of a truck transporting it to the Jizhou District

China is Asia’s number one breeder of ostriches, with around 20,000 farms according to a 2019 study.  

They are often in demand for their feathers, meat, eggs and bones.  

Ostriches are unlikely to attack humans unless provoked by humans but can become aggressive if they feel threatened.

Last month a fisherman near the city of Yancheng was repeatedly trampled by a ‘guard ostrich’ after breaking into a private property to fish at a pond.

Video footage showed the man, believed to be in his 50s, being attacked by the large bird at a property in the eastern province of Jiangsu.