Published
Saturday, August 25, 2018 11:42AM EDT
The
Calgary Zoo made history earlier this month when it welcomed its first-ever
greater rhea chicks.
The pair
– now three weeks old – hatched at the zoo on Aug. 3 and 5.
The
flightless greater rhea is the largest bird in South America and is found
mostly in Argentina and Brazil. Related to the ostrich and the emu, the bird
uses its wings not for flight, but for balance and changing direction while
running.
Male
rheas incubate the eggs and care for the new hatchlings, guarding them
aggressively for six weeks after their birth.
Colleen
Baird, the general curator at the Calgary Zoo, told CTV Calgary that the male
greater rhea, Jekyll, has fully embraced his traditional role of dad and
caregiver.
The
International Union for Conservation of Nature has classified the greater rhea as
a near-threatened species, meaning that it is close to qualifying for or is
likely to qualify for a critically endangered, endangered or vulnerable
classification in the near future.
The birds
are part of the Calgary Zoo’s Species Survival Plan, which helps safeguard
at-risk species.
Greater
rheas are often hunted for their skin, which is used to manufacture leather,
while others collect their eggs for consumption. Both have contributed to the
species’ dwindling numbers.
No comments:
Post a Comment