New to the Zoo: Meet Our Three Greater Rheas

These unique birds premiered back in December at Ararat Ridge Zoo. They look kind of like baby ostriches or even emus, but they are actually greater rheas—the largest bird species native to the Americas today.

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One of our zookeepers shared this with me about these fun new birds:

Greater rheas belong to the rhea created kind along with their relatives, the lesser rheas. They are not related to ostriches or emus. However, they are considered ratites, a collective term used to describe ostriches, emus, cassowaries, rheas, and kiwis. Ratites are flightless birds that lack keel bones.

Greater rheas stand 4.5 to 5.5 feet tall and may weigh 40 to 60 pounds as adults. These girls are about six months old now, so they still have some growing to do.

These omnivorous birds may be flightless, but they still have full-size wings, which they use for displaying, temperature regulation, and balancing while running zigzags up to 40 miles per hour.

Greater rheas range from dark brown to pale gray and usually have black markings. Leucistic and albino birds are also common, even in the wild.

During the non-breeding season, they can be found in flocks of up to 100 birds roaming the grasslands, scrubs, open woodlands, and wetlands of eastern South America. During breeding season, males will split off on their own because they are entirely responsible for raising their chicks. A population of about 600 greater rheas can also be found in Germany. They come from a group of six birds that escaped back in 2000.

Greater rheas are classified as near threatened, as they are facing habitat loss and overhunting in their native range. God has given humans dominion over creation, which means we should wisely steward animals and natural resources. We are thrilled to display such a unique species at the Ararat Ridge Zoo to teach guests about God’s design in birds and environmental stewardship, and we can’t wait to see them continue to grow!

Most zoos teach evolution and millions of years, so it’s thrilling to see creatures like these rheas being used (like all of our other animals) to point guests toward their Creator, who made every bird according to its kind.

Most zoos teach evolution and millions of years, so it’s thrilling to see creatures like these rheas being used (like all of our other animals) to point guests toward their Creator, who made every bird according to its kind. We teach families from a true biblical-worldview perspective!

Plan your visit to see the new rheas and all our other animals, including the inhabitants of our newly expanded Creation Zoo, by visiting ArkEncounter.com and CreationMuseum.org.

Thanks for stopping by and thanks for praying,
Ken

This item was written with the assistance of AiG’s research team.