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Rheas
The rhea ( ), also known as the ñandu ( ) or South American ostrich, is a South American ratite (flightless bird without a keel (bird anatomy), keel on the sternum bone) of the order Rheiformes. They are distantly related to the two African Ostrich, ostriches and Australia's emu (the largest, second-largest and third-largest living ratites, respectively), with rheas placing just behind the emu in height and overall size. Most taxonomic authorities recognize two Extant taxon, extant species: the Greater rhea, greater or American rhea (''Rhea americana''), and the Darwin's rhea, lesser or Darwin's rhea (''Rhea pennata''). The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) classifies the puna rhea as another species instead of a subspecies of the lesser rhea. The IUCN currently rates the greater and puna rheas as near-threatened in their native ranges, while Darwin's rhea is of least concern, having recovered from past threats to its survival. In addition, the feral populat ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Greater Rhea
The greater rhea (''Rhea americana'') is a species of flightless bird native to eastern South America. Other names for the greater rhea include the grey, common, or American rhea; ema (Portuguese (language), Portuguese); or ñandú (Guaraní language, Guaraní and Spanish language, Spanish). One of two species in the genus ''Rhea (bird), Rhea'', in the Family (biology), family Rheidae, it inhabits a variety of open areas, such as grasslands, savanna or grassy wetlands. Weighing , the greater rhea is the largest native bird in the Americas. In the wild, the greater rhea has a life expectancy of 10.5 years. It is also notable for its reproductive habits, and for the fact that a population has established itself in Northern Germany in recent years. The species is listed as Near Threatened by the IUCN. Taxonomy The greater rhea was Species description, formally described in 1758 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the 10th edition of Systema Naturae, tenth edition of his ''Syst ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rhea Americana
The greater rhea (''Rhea americana'') is a species of flightless bird native to eastern South America. Other names for the greater rhea include the grey, common, or American rhea; ema ( Portuguese); or ñandú ( Guaraní and Spanish). One of two species in the genus '' Rhea'', in the family Rheidae, it inhabits a variety of open areas, such as grasslands, savanna or grassy wetlands. Weighing , the greater rhea is the largest native bird in the Americas. In the wild, the greater rhea has a life expectancy of 10.5 years. It is also notable for its reproductive habits, and for the fact that a population has established itself in Northern Germany in recent years. The species is listed as Near Threatened by the IUCN. Taxonomy The greater rhea was formally described in 1758 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the tenth edition of his ''Systema Naturae''. He placed it with the ostriches in the genus '' Struthio'' and coined the binomial name ''Struthio americanus''. Linnaeus ba ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Greater Rhea
The greater rhea (''Rhea americana'') is a species of flightless bird native to eastern South America. Other names for the greater rhea include the grey, common, or American rhea; ema (Portuguese (language), Portuguese); or ñandú (Guaraní language, Guaraní and Spanish language, Spanish). One of two species in the genus ''Rhea (bird), Rhea'', in the Family (biology), family Rheidae, it inhabits a variety of open areas, such as grasslands, savanna or grassy wetlands. Weighing , the greater rhea is the largest native bird in the Americas. In the wild, the greater rhea has a life expectancy of 10.5 years. It is also notable for its reproductive habits, and for the fact that a population has established itself in Northern Germany in recent years. The species is listed as Near Threatened by the IUCN. Taxonomy The greater rhea was Species description, formally described in 1758 by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in the 10th edition of Systema Naturae, tenth edition of his ''Syst ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ratite
Ratites () are a polyphyletic group consisting of all birds within the infraclass Palaeognathae that lack keels and cannot fly. They are mostly large, long-necked, and long-legged, the exception being the kiwi, which is also the only nocturnal extant ratite. The understanding of relationships within the paleognath clade has been in flux. Previously, all the flightless members had been assigned to the order Struthioniformes, which is more recently regarded as containing only the ostrich. The modern bird superorder Palaeognathae consists of ratites and the flighted Neotropic tinamous (compare to Neognathae). Unlike other flightless birds, the ratites have no keel on their sternum—hence the name, from the Latin ('raft', a vessel which has no keel—in contradistinction to extant flighted birds with a keel). Without this to anchor their wing muscles, they could not have flown even if they had developed suitable wings. Ratites are a polyphyletic group; tinamous fall within the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pterocnemia
Darwin's rhea or the lesser rhea (''Rhea pennata'') is a large flightless bird, the smaller of the two Extant taxon, extant species of rhea (bird), rheas. It is found in the Altiplano and Patagonia in South America. Description The lesser rhea stands at tall. Length is and weight is . Like most ratites, it has a small head and a small Beak, bill, the latter measuring , but has long legs and a long neck. It has relatively larger wings than other ratites, enabling it to run particularly well. It can reach speeds of 60 km/h (37 mph), enabling it to outrun predators. The sharp claws on the toes are effective weapons. Their feathers are similar to those of ostriches, in that they have no Wiktionary:aftershaft, aftershaft.Perrins, C. (1987) Their plumage is spotted brown and white, and the upper part of their Tarsus (skeleton), tarsus is feathered. The Tarsus (skeleton), tarsus is long and has 18 horizontal plates on the front. Etymology It is known as ''ñandú petiso ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Darwin's Rhea
Darwin's rhea or the lesser rhea (''Rhea pennata'') is a large flightless bird, the smaller of the two extant species of rheas. It is found in the Altiplano and Patagonia in South America. Description The lesser rhea stands at tall. Length is and weight is . Like most ratites, it has a small head and a small bill, the latter measuring , but has long legs and a long neck. It has relatively larger wings than other ratites, enabling it to run particularly well. It can reach speeds of 60 km/h (37 mph), enabling it to outrun predators. The sharp claws on the toes are effective weapons. Their feathers are similar to those of ostriches, in that they have no aftershaft.Perrins, C. (1987) Their plumage is spotted brown and white, and the upper part of their tarsus is feathered. The tarsus is long and has 18 horizontal plates on the front. Etymology It is known as ''ñandú petiso'', or ''ñandú del norte'', in Argentina, where the majority live. Other names are ''su ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Flightless Bird
Flightless birds are birds that cannot Bird flight, fly, as they have, through evolution, lost the ability to. There are over 60 extant species, including the well-known ratites (ostriches, emus, cassowary, cassowaries, Rhea (bird), rheas, and Kiwi (bird), kiwis) and penguins. The smallest flightless bird is the Inaccessible Island rail (length 12.5 cm, weight 34.7 g). The largest (both heaviest and tallest) flightless bird, which is also the largest living bird in general, is the common ostrich (2.7 m, 156 kg). Many domesticated birds, such as the domestic chicken and domestic duck, have lost the ability to fly for extended periods, although their ancestral species, the red junglefowl and mallard, respectively, are capable of extended flight. A few particularly bred birds, such as the Broad Breasted White turkey, have become totally flightless as a result of selective breeding; the birds were bred to grow massive breast meat that weighs too much for the bird's wings ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rhea Fossilis
''Rhea fossilis'' is an extinct species of bird in the genus '' Rhea'' that inhabited the Southern Cone of South America during the Neogene period. Its closest living relatives are the greater rhea and the lesser rhea. Naming and discovery ''Rhea fossilis'' is only known by a couple of fossils, a tibia and tarsometatarsus, discovered by Alcide Mercerat and Francisco Moreno in 1891. They were some of the first paleontologists to describe and catalogue the rhea fossil record. From the fossils found, he and Mercerat determined it to be a transitional species between the greater rhea and the lesser rhea. They also inferred it was the same size as modern-day rheas. Paleoecology ''Rhea fossilis'' is very similar to its extant relatives, albeit slighter more slender. It inhabited the grassland and scrub forest of the Pampas region of Argentina. During this time, the area was warmer and wetter than it is today. Like its living cousins that still inhabit the region today, it fed on ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Extant Taxon
Neontology is a part of biology that, in contrast to paleontology, studies and deals with living (or, more generally, '' recent'') organisms. It is the study of extant taxa (singular: extant taxon): taxa (such as species, genera and families) with members still alive, as opposed to (all) being extinct. For example: * The Indian elephant (''Elephas maximus'') is an extant species, and the woolly mammoth (''Mammuthus primigenius'') is an extinct species. * The moose (''Alces alces'') is an extant species, and the Irish elk (''Megaloceros giganteus'') is an extinct species. * In the group of molluscs known as the cephalopods, there were approximately 600 extant species and 7,500 extinct species. A taxon can be classified as extinct if it is broadly agreed or certified that no members of the group are still alive. Conversely, an extinct taxon can be reclassified as extant if there are new discoveries of living species (" Lazarus species"), or if previously known extant species ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ostrich
Ostriches are large flightless birds. Two living species are recognised, the common ostrich, native to large parts of sub-Saharan Africa, and the Somali ostrich, native to the Horn of Africa. They are the heaviest and largest living birds, with adult common ostriches weighing anywhere between 63.5 and 145 kilograms and laying the largest eggs of any living land animal.Del Hoyo, Josep, et al. Handbook of the birds of the world. Vol. 1. No. 8. Barcelona: Lynx edicions, 1992. With the ability to run at 70 km/h (43.5 mph), they are the fastest birds on land. They are farmed worldwide, with significant industries in the Philippines and in Namibia. South Africa produces about 70% of global ostrich products, with the industry largely centered around the town of Oudtshoorn. Ostrich leather is a lucrative commodity, and the large feathers are used as plumes for the decoration of ceremonial headgear. Ostrich eggs and meat have been used by humans for millennia. Ostrich ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
