Commuters are used to traffic backups during the rush-hour commute on the Golden Gate Bridge. But even this had to throw some of them for a loop.

An ostrich got loose from a minivan Monday and started roaming around near the toll plaza on the bridge.

Ron Love of Healdsburg was driving away from San Francisco on the bridge, transporting two ostriches in the back of his minivan. Love was stopped in traffic when he accelerated, jolting one of the ostriches, who collided with the back window of the van and got loose on the bridge, according to California Highway Patrol Sgt. Wayne Ziese.

The ostrich began running around on the bridge, stopping traffic for about eight minutes before the Highway Patrol and Golden Gate Bridge District police were able to move the bird out of traffic, Ziese said.

The ostrich had road rash from the fall but was not seriously hurt and was resting comfortably at home, Ziese said.

Robots can housesit but don’t ask it to make tea

A 3-foot-tall humanoid robot that can recognize about 10,000 words and work as a house sitter will go on sale in Japan in September, its manufacturer said Monday.

The “Wakamaru” robot can recognize the faces of up to 10 people and talk to them. When linked to cell phones, it can also monitor situations at home, such as a burglary or someone falling ill, according to Mitsubishi-Heavy Industries Ltd.

It said it would be the first time a robot with communication ability for home use has been sold.

“This is the opening of an era in which human beings and robots can coexist,” it said.

Mitsubishi-Heavy said it will start taking orders for “Wakamaru” from Sept. 16, and plans to sell 100 of the 66-pound robots at about $14,300 for residents in central Tokyo.

The owner’s schedule can be programmed in advance and Wakamaru can give a wake-up call and remind them of the day’s events.