Greater Rhea

The Greater Rhea is also known as the Grey, Common or American Rhea. The native range of this flightless bird is the eastern part of South America; it is not only the largest species of the genus Rhea but also the largest American bird alive. It is also notable for its reproductive habits, and for the fact that a group has established itself in Germany in recent years. In its native range, it is known as ñandú or ema .

The Greater Rhea is classified as Near Threatened (NT), is close to qualifying for or is likely to qualify for a threatened category in the near future.

The greater rhea is the largest of all South American birds and is related to ostriches and emus. These flightless birds use their long, powerful legs to outrun trouble. Although their large wings are useless for flight, they are used for balance and for changing direction as the bird runs. Greater rheas are polygamous, so males have many different mates. Females lay their eggs—one every other day for a week or ten days—in a ground nest of the male's design. More

Greater rhea in english wildlifepark arp.jpgGreater rhea in engl... 3,151,931 bytes Greater rhea pair arp.jpgGreater rhea pair ar... 3,627,092 bytes Huevos de Ñandú.jpgHuevos de Ñandú.jpg 14,332 bytes Lahr Stadtgarten 9.jpgLahr Stadtgarten 9.jpg 6,932,634 bytes LongBilledRheaLyd.jpgLongBilledRheaLyd.jpg 50,247 bytes Mercedes Cossio 2.jpgMercedes Cossio 2.jpg 526,809 bytes Nandu 1 db.jpgNandu 1 db.jpg 793,713 bytes Nandu 2 db. More

Greater Rhea is the more widespread of the two species, ranging from eastern Brazil south to central Argentina. My friend Kim Risen took a much better shot recently in Bolivia (left). More recently, Murray Lord sent me his much better photograph of a Lesser Rhea (right). This species has two disjunct populations: one in the puna zone of northern Chile, and the other in barren steppes of southernmost Argentina and Chile (where this photo was taken). More

The Greater Rhea (Rhea americana) is also known as the Grey, Common or American Rhea. The native range of this flightless bird is the eastern part of South America; it is not only the largest species of the genus Rhea but also the largest American bird alive. It is also notable for its reproductive habits, and for the fact that a group has established itself in Germany in recent years. In its native range, it is known as ñandú (Spanish) or ema (Portuguese). More

The Greater Rhea is a Ratite, the family encompassing Ostriches, Emus, Cassowaries etc. Generally found in the southern half of Brazil and the northern half of Argentina, it is a very large, omnivorous, flightless bird, about the size of a person, which can be seen walking in fallow fields near Mostardas in Rio Grande do Sul. There is only one other Rhea, the Lesser Rhea, also endemic to South America. The Greater Rhea is classed as Near Threatened by the IUCN. More

Greater rheas live at densities of 0.002–0.076 birds per acre (0.05–0.19 birds/ha). In the nonbreeding season they live in flocks of 20–50 birds. Once the breeding season starts, males establish a nest site and defend its immediate vicinity, attracting groups of females to lay in the nest. FEEDING ECOLOGY AND DIET Herbivore, feeds on grasses and forbs. REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY Males incubate eggs laid by harem of females in a nest on the ground. More

The plumage of the greater rhea is generally greyish-brown, with darker patches on the neck and upper back, and whitish feathers on the thighs and abdomen (2) (3) (9) (10). During the breeding season, a prominent black ring develops at the base of the neck (2). The greater rhea’s feathers, not needed for flight, are long and plume-like (10), and the grey legs are long and powerful, with strong toes, and are adapted for running and for ranging over large distances (6) (7). More

The male greater rhea is slightly larger and greyer in colour than the female, with a more pronounced dark patch on the neck and upper back (11). Young birds are greyish, with dark stripes (2) (3) (6) (10). Five subspecies of greater rhea are recognised, based on variations in size and in the extent of black on the neck, although the exact characteristics and ranges of several of these subspecies are tentative (2) (3) (10). More

Greater Rheas have a fluffy, tattered-looking plumage. The feathers are gray or brown, with high individual variation, In general, males are darker than females. Even in the wild – particularly in Argentina – leucistic individuals (with white body plumage and blue eyes) as well as albinos occur. Hatchling Greater Rheas are grey with dark lengthwise stripes. More

Common Names: More

the greater rhea is the largest amongst South American birds. About the Species This specimen (TMM M-6721), a juvenile, came from the Rockin' W Ranch in Dripping Springs, Hays County, Texas. The sutures are clearly visible on the skull itself and many of the bones are not yet fully ossified. More

Rheas are birds of grassland, the greater rhea and one sub-species of lesser rhea, Pterocnemia pennata pennata, of lowland grassland or pampas. The other two subspecies of lesser rhea live in the puna zone of the Andes, inhabiting deserts, salt puna, heath, and pumice flats. Although P.p. pennata feeds on lowland grassland in the non-breeding season, it usually breeds in upland areas where bunch grass grows, around 5–6,000 ft (2,000 m). More

distribution of the greater rheaDistribution and Habitat The greater rhea is found in southeastern South America. It lives on the pampas, campos, cerrado, and open chaco woodland, but avoids open grassland. During the breeding season it stays near rivers, lakes, and/or marshes. Social Behavior Males are generally solitary during the spring, while females and young travel in small groups. More

Greater Rheas also show a higher egg production under captivity than in semi captivity (24 eggs). The hatching success of Greater Rheas is higher in captivity (median = 60 %) than in semi captivity (45 %), or in the wild (30 %), whereas Lesser Rheas show the opposite trend (captivity = 51 %, wild = 60 %). More

The Greater Rhea belongs to flightless birds, because of its enormous size. It is spread in South America in countries such as Brazil, Bolivia, Argentina and Uruguay. There it can be found in pampas and wooded areas. The Common rhea also known as the Greater rhea is a large bird with the size of 140 cm (55 inches). As already mentioned with its size it is not possible for him to fly. Despite that it can reach the speed of 60 km per hour (37mph). More