(Rhea Americana)
The rhea is related to the emu and the ostrich. The rhea is almost the same size as an ostrich. It's only a little bit smaller. Rheas are often mistaken for ostriches because they look so much alike!
The rhea is a gray and white bird that does not fly. It has 2 strong long legs with three toes on each foot. It's about 130cm or 4 - 5 feet tall. It weighs about 23-44 kg or 50 –70 lb. It has feathers, round wings, and a small tail. It has holes as ears.
The range of the rhea is the southern half of South America. It is found from northeastern Brazil to Argentina and Peru. It lives in the grasslands of these countries.
The rhea eats greenery, insects, frogs, geckos, and lizards.
Rheas breed differently than most birds. Five to fifteen females travel in a group together to find a male to mate with. He will mate them for only a couple of weeks while they lay him a mound of eggs. Once he thinks there are enough eggs in the nest, he quits mating and sits on them. The group of females goes off and finds another male. Rheas lay up to 12-60 eggs per mate. The females lay the eggs but the male incubates them and raises the chicks. Multiple females lay eggs in the same nest. The male incubates a total of about 50 eggs. The eggs weigh approximately 3 to 4 pounds and are 10 times larger than chicken eggs. The eggs are laid up to 10 days apart, but they still hatch at the same time. The eggs hatch after about 5 weeks. In 24 hours, the chicks are able to walk around the nest. The young become adults in about two years.
The rhea has good hearing and eyesight and can run fast. The rhea can run up to 30 mph. Its sight and hearing helps the rhea to see and hear any predators from far away. It will lay flat on its stomach to hide from enemies.
Rheas are used for oils, feathers, meat, and leather. The rhea is not an endangered species.
The zoo has two male rheas. They are in the same exhibit as the llamas.
For more information visit:
http://www.rheagrande.com
http://www.santaanazoo.org/tour/south_am.htm
http://www.montereybay.com/creagrus/rheas.html
http://www.encyclopedia.com/articles/10933.html
http://www.fsis.usda.gov/OA/pubs/ratites.htm
by Jessica
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