Rheidae is a

family Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Idea ...

of flightless ratite birds which first appeared in the

Paleocene The Paleocene, ( ) or Palaeocene, is a geological epoch that lasted from about 66 to 56 million years ago (mya). It is the first epoch of the Paleogene Period in the modern Cenozoic Era. The name is a combination of the Ancient Greek ''pal ...

. It is today represented by the sole living

genus Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms as well as viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus comes above species and below family. In binomial n ...

'' Rhea'', but also contains several extinct genera.

Taxonomy

Order Rheiformes (Forbes, 1884) Furbringer, 1888 heimorphae Bonaparte, 1849; Rheae Forbes 1884ref name="mikko"> * Family † Opisthodactylidae Ameghino 1895 ** Genus ?†'' Diogenornis'' de Alvarenga 1983 (Late Paleocene) – possibly a member of

Casuariiformes The Casuariiformes is an order of large flightless birds that has four surviving members: the three species of cassowary, and the only remaining species of emu. They are divided into either a single family, Casuariidae, or more typically two, wi ...

instead. ** Genus †'' Opisthodactylus'' Ameghino 1895 (Miocene) – rheid? * Family Rheidae (Bonaparte 1849) Bonaparte, 1853 ** Genus †'' Heterorhea'' Rovereto 1914 (Pliocene) ** Genus †'' Hinasuri'' Tambussi 1995 ** Genus '' Rhea'' Brisson 1760

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q12214029 Ratites Bird families * Extant Thanetian first appearances Taxa named by Charles Lucien Bonaparte