Found in South America, the Rhea bird is one of the largest flightless birds in the world. Research shows that Rhea dads could be the most devoted fathers in the world of the feathered.
Basic info:
Name: Rhea
Scientific classification:
- Kingdom: Animalia
- Phylum: Chordata
- Class: Aves
- Order: Rheiformes
- Family: Rheidae
- Genus: Rhea
Height: 3-5ft
Weight: 55-80 pounds
Diet: Broad-leafed plants, roots, seeds, fruits, small insects, baby reptiles and small rodents
Mating: Polygamous
Nest size: 10-60 eggs
Flight: Flightless; can run at speeds up to 40 miles/hour
Found in: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay
Related to: Ostrich and emu
5 fun facts about Rhea dads
- Rhea dads take on the sole responsibility of building the nest. This includes finding the right spot, procuring the right materials and building a good quality nest (and they do this for every female they mate with – which can be anywhere between 2 & 12).
- Rhea fathers are a lot like penguin dads. They incubate the eggs and hatch it themselves (they usually attract the females to the nest – a shallow hole in the ground lined with leaves and moss – and have them deposit their eggs there).
- These birds are great at using decoys. They use rotten eggs, mouldy fruit and other animal bait as decoys to distract predators from the nest. These decoys are lined around the nest and are replenished whenever they are consumed. This helps keep the clutch safe from harm.
- Once the eggs hatch (after 6 weeks of incubation), the Rhea father spends the next 6 months caring for the chicks. The chicks burrow into their father’s feathers and revel in his feathery warmth. So possessive is he of his clutch, he even keeps the mothers at bay by attacking them with a ferocious charge and vicious bite.
- Often, when they aren’t fulfilled by their existing brood, Rhea dads charge adolescent males as stand-in fathers, while they mate with more females and create a new nest. They then rotate between the nests, caring for the young and making sure they are properly protected.
Want to know more about this not-so-deadbeat dad? Take a look at the video below:
When it comes to fatherhood, its safe to say that the Rhea male is extremely devoted. He is one of those exceptions, who joins ranks of those animal dads who outrank mom in the art of child rearing.
-NISHA PRAKASH
P.S: Featured Image: Pixabay
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