Designed by Paul Smith 2006. This website is copyrighted by law.
Material contained herewith may not be used without the prior written permission of FAUNA Paraguay.
Photographs on this web-site were taken by Paul Smith, Hemme Batjes, Regis Nossent,
Alberto Esquivel, Arne Lesterhuis, José Luis Cartes, Rebecca Zarza and Hugo del Castillo and are used with their permission.
RHEIDAE - RHEAS
Inaccurately known as "South American Ostriches", the Paraguayan branch of the family is represented by a single species of large, flightless ratite, adult males standing up to 1.5m tall and weighing 25kg or more. Rheas are characterised by their long, feathered neck and featherless tarsus. They are powerful runners with each foot possessing three well-developed toes, the hind-toe being absent. The wings are well-developed but useless for flight on account of their long, soft feathers and the tail is completely absent. The syrinx has a single pair of syringeal muscles. The clavicle is absent and the tibia lacks a bony bridge. The nostrils are located in the middle of a depressed, flattened bill. Eyesight and hearing are both well-developed, enabling them to detect potential threats at great distance. Rheas are social birds with a polygamous breeding system, reaching sexual maturity after two years. Like all ratites males have a conspicuous penis.
REFERENCES
Campbell B & Lack E 1985 - A Dictionary of Birds - T & AD Poyser.
Davies SJJF 2000 - Ratites and Tinamous - Oxford University Press.
Folch A 1992 - Rheidae Handbook of the Birds of the World Volume 1 - Lynx Ediciones.
