With all the types of eggs available these days—organic, cage-free and various others—it's tough to decide which ones to buy. Now there's another option: Which bird do they come from? At Whole Foods and farmers' markets, the egg selection goes way beyond chickens. Give these alternatives a try:

Duck eggs Slightly larger than chicken eggs, they have luxuriously rich yolks that are best served runny. Fry them sunny-side up and serve over cooked greens, buttered toast or rice. More to try this way: turkey and goose eggs.

Quail eggs These tiny speckled ovules make impressive hors d'oeuvres. For adorable deviled eggs, boil them for 5 minutes, then proceed as usual. More to try this way: pheasant eggs.

Ostrich eggs The shells of these jumbo eggs are so solid, you'll need a hammer to open them. And at $40 a pop, you should keep the prehistoric-looking shell as a souvenir. To do so, stand the egg in a bowl and tap a small hole into one end with a screwdriver, then shake the insides of the egg into the bowl and rinse out the shell. Since one ostrich egg is equivalent to about 20 chicken eggs, it's great for frittatas or scrambling. More to try this way: emu eggs.