Greater Rhea

Description:

The main color of both male and female Greater Rheas is gray. The top of their head, chin, and neck are most commonly black, while the females are not as dark as the males. The males are also larger than the females. Their feet are brownish gray, containing three toes and the bill is horn colored. Adults can weigh up to 55 lbs and reach heights of 60 inches tall.

Habitat:

Greater Rheas are found generally in South Central South America, ranging from Northern and Eastern Brazil to central Argentina. Also including Bolivia, Paraguay, and Uruguay. They range from rivers and swampy areas to grassy plains even open brush.

Notes:

In the wild Greater Rheas are omnivores, eating a mixture of roots, leaves, seeds, insects, and small invertebrates, even mollusks. Breeding season for Greater Rheas is from August to January, they reach sexual maturity around 2 years of age. The male rhea will court females, from two to twelve. He brings them to his homemade nest, where they each lay at least an egg. The males will care for ten to sixty eggs at a time, usually it averages out to twenty eggs at a time. The male will vigorously protect his eggs, they have been seen trying to attack low flying planes! The eggs are cream colored and around 600 grams. Incubation takes around 6 weeks, and the young Rheas will stay with the male for up to 6 months. In the wild they can live up to twenty years. Greater Rheas are now near threatened because their habitat is slowing being taken over by farmland. They can be beneficial to farmers because they eat many bugs and unwanted plants, while at the same time they are indifferent when it comes to eating crops, this causes them to also be considered pests. They are the heaviest of the new world birds; they have strong legs and feet for evading predators or defense. They use their wings like rudders to turn quickly and out maneuver their pursuer. They have good peripheral vision and very acute hearing. Their beaks are also adapted for grazing. All info from Elmwood Park Zoo website, cited here.