(→Behaviour: Added sections) |
|||
Line 18: | Line 18: | ||
Grass and scrubland, in the north at high elevation, in the south in lowland and foothills. | Grass and scrubland, in the north at high elevation, in the south in lowland and foothills. | ||
==Behaviour== | ==Behaviour== | ||
− | Rheas are flightless but are adept runners, reaching speeds of up to 60 km/hr. | + | Rheas are flightless but are adept runners, reaching speeds of up to 60 km/hr. |
====Breeding==== | ====Breeding==== | ||
− | + | Their mating system is both Polyandry and Polygyny. Males mate with multiple females and females mate with multiple males. The nest is a scrape in the ground, lined with dry grass or twigs. It is built by the male who incubates and cares for young from multiple females. Each nest may contain between 10 and 30 eggs, which start yellowish green but fade to buff over time. The male incubates the eggs and cares for the young. Incubation period is around 40 days. | |
The young are about 90 percent of adult size by 8 to 9 months but may not reach sexual maturity until about three years in males, and two years in females. | The young are about 90 percent of adult size by 8 to 9 months but may not reach sexual maturity until about three years in males, and two years in females. | ||
− | ====Diet | + | ====Diet==== |
They are omnivorous feeders, taking mostly plant matter including grasses and seeds, but also small animals, especially insects. | They are omnivorous feeders, taking mostly plant matter including grasses and seeds, but also small animals, especially insects. | ||
====Vocalisations==== | ====Vocalisations==== |
Revision as of 10:04, 18 January 2019
Alternative name: Darwin's Rhea; includes Puna Rhea
- Rhea pennata
Identification
90cm. Plumage greyish-brown flecked with white.
Distribution
Peru, Bolivia, northern Chile and north-western Argentina, and well separated from the above, in southern Chile and Argentina.
Taxonomy
Subspecies1
- R. p. garleppi - Desert puna of se Peru, sw Bolivia and nw Argentina
- R. p. tarapacensis - Puna of n Chile (Arica to Atacama)
- R. p. pennata - Patagonian steppes of s Argentina and Magellanic Chile
The Lesser Rhea has been proposed split into two species: Puna Rhea (Rhea tarapacensis) with subspecies garleppi, and Darwin's Rhea (Rhea pennata).
Pterocnemia vs. Rhea
Some authorities (Howard & Moore, 2003) place Lesser Rhea (R. pennata) in the monotypic genus Pterocnemia. However, Sibley & Monroe (1996), Clements (2007) and SACC since July 2008 place pennata within Rhea and the Opus follows the majority.
Habitat
Grass and scrubland, in the north at high elevation, in the south in lowland and foothills.
Behaviour
Rheas are flightless but are adept runners, reaching speeds of up to 60 km/hr.
Breeding
Their mating system is both Polyandry and Polygyny. Males mate with multiple females and females mate with multiple males. The nest is a scrape in the ground, lined with dry grass or twigs. It is built by the male who incubates and cares for young from multiple females. Each nest may contain between 10 and 30 eggs, which start yellowish green but fade to buff over time. The male incubates the eggs and cares for the young. Incubation period is around 40 days. The young are about 90 percent of adult size by 8 to 9 months but may not reach sexual maturity until about three years in males, and two years in females.
Diet
They are omnivorous feeders, taking mostly plant matter including grasses and seeds, but also small animals, especially insects.
Vocalisations
The male makes a low roaring sound during breeding.
Movements
Resident but southern populations move into uplands for breeding.
References
- Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2018. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2018. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Jaramillo, A. 2003. Birds of Chile. Princeton & Oxford: Princeton Univ. Press. ISBN 978-0691117409
- Lesser Rhea (Rhea pennata), In Neotropical Birds Online (T. S. Schulenberg, Editor). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. retrieved from Neotropical Birds Online: https://neotropical.birds.cornell.edu/Species-Account/nb/species/lesrhe2
- Folch, A., Christie, D.A., Jutglar, F. & Garcia, E.F.J. (2019). Lesser Rhea (Rhea pennata). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. & de Juana, E. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. (retrieved from https://www.hbw.com/node/52400 on 18 January 2019).
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Lesser Rhea. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 26 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Lesser_Rhea