Rhea And Erdrich Similarities

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Differences Between the Emu, Rhea, and Ostrich Emu, Rhea, Ostrich… these are the names of three of the five flightless birds in the ratite family. These three birds all look strikingly similar except for their size, but is that really the only difference? Although their size is an extreme factor in their life they have several other differences. The three main differences between the emu, rhea, and ostrich are their habitat, their predators and defense, and how they raise their young. Before going more in depth about each of these differences let’s take a look at a brief background of these three birds. All three of these birds are in the Ratite family, which is a group of flightless running birds. This is the most primitive group of all …show more content…

For the ostrich, who is found in Africa, their predators may include cheetahs, lions, leopards, African hunting dogs, and the spotted hyena. Ostriches have many different defenses they can use, for example, they live in groups of 2-100 birds, most commonly in flocks of 10, this helps with their defense because with that many eyes they are able to spot any sign of danger. The real danger comes when ostriches are alone, the myth that ostriches put their head in the sand when threatened is not that far from the truth. When they are threatened and can’t run away, they do not actually stick their head in the sand, but they will go low to the ground, stick their head and neck in front of them, and remain still. This camouflages them and they end up looking like a rock, or mound of dirt. Another defense is their strong legs and clawed feet, they can deliver a kick that is strong enough to kill a lion. The last defense is that the ostrich has evolved for fast running, where most birds have three toes, the ostrich only has two making it possible to run faster. They also use their wings to help balance them while they’re running. So even though the ostrich can’t fly away from predators, they can run fast enough to leave the predator far behind. The emus have different types of predators, the ones that attack the older emus, like dingoes and wedged-tailed eagles, and the ones that go after the eggs, like reptiles such as snakes and goannas. The emu also has a very strong kick, but unlike the ostrich, has three toes with the middle one having a long nail. Emus are the only bird with calf muscles and this combined with their strong legs allows them to jump straight up seven feet in the air. When their kick and jumping does not do the trick emus, like ostriches, can run from their predators. “With good eyesight and amazing agility, emus can escape most any trouble! If

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