Common Ostrich (Struthio camelus) at Riverbanks Zoo SC by Lee
“Gavest thou the goodly wings unto the peacocks? or wings and feathers unto the ostrich? Which leaveth her eggs in the earth, and warmeth them in dust, And forgetteth that the foot may crush them, or that the wild beast may break them. She is hardened against her young ones, as though they were not hers: her labor is in vain without fear; Because God hath deprived her of wisdom, neither hath he imparted to her understanding. What time she lifteth up herself on high, she scorneth the horse and his rider.” (Job 39:13-18)
Today we have thirteen (13) birds that are in four (4) Orders with a total of five (5) families. As mentioned before, these will be much easier than the LARGE Passeriformes Order that took months to view. Our Orders are the Struthioniformes, with one (1) family, Struthionidae that has two (2) Ostritches; the Rheiformes has one (1) family, Rheidae, with two (2) Rheas; and then the Casuariiformes Order has two (2) families, Casuariidae with three (3) Cassowaries and the Dromiidae family with a solo Emu; Apterygiformes Order with the Apterygidae family with five (5) Kiwis.
Common Ostrich (Struthio camelus) Closeup by ©WikiC
Struthioniformes, with one (1) family, Struthionidae that has two (2) Ostritches – “Ostriches are large, non-flying birds that live in Africa. Besides in their natural environment, ostriches are often breed as farm animals because some people like to eat their meat, eggs or to wear fashion products made of their skin. Although they are killed for commercial purposes, they are not endangered. There are around 2 million ostriches that can be found around the globe.” (SoftSchools)
Greater Rhea (Rhea americana) by ©Wayne Deeker
Rheiformes has one (1) family, Rheidae, with two (2) Rheas – “Rhea is a member of the group of flightless birds. This is the largest bird in the South America. There are two species of rhea: Greater or American Rhea and Lesser or Darwin’s Rhea. They differ in size and in type of habitat they inhabit. Rhea can be found in open grasslands, pampas and woodlands of Argentina, Uruguay, Bolivia, Paraguay, Chile, Peru and Brazil. Rhea is also kept on farms because of its meat, eggs and skin. Number of rhea in the wild is decreased due to habitat loss, but they are still not listed as endangered species.” (SoftSchools with editing)
Southern Cassowary (Casuarius casuarius) by Ian
Casuariiformes Order has two (2) families, Casuariidae with three (3) Cassowaries – “The bird order Casuariiformes has four surviving members: the three species of cassowary, and the only remaining species of emu. The emus are classified in the family Dromaiidae, while the cassowaries are all located within the Casuariidae family. All four members of the order are very large flightless birds native to Australia-New Guinea.” (Wikipedia)
North Island Brown Kiwi (Apteryx mantelli) by Derek©WikiC
Apterygiformes Order with the Apterygidae family with five (5) Kiwis – “Kiwi (pronounced /kiːwiː/) or kiwis are flightless birds native to New Zealand, in the genus Apteryx and family Apterygidae. At around the size of a domestic chicken, kiwi are by far the smallest living ratites (which also consist of ostriches, emus, rheas, and cassowaries), and lay the largest egg in relation to their body size of any species of bird in the world. DNA sequence comparisons have yielded the surprising conclusion that kiwi are much more closely related to the extinct Malagasy elephant birds than to the moa with which they shared New Zealand. There are five recognized species. All species have been negatively affected by historic deforestation but currently the remaining large areas of their forest habitat are well protected in reserves and national parks. At present, the greatest threat to their survival is predation by invasive mammalian predators.
Kiwi is the nickname used internationally for people from New Zealand,[1] as well as being a relatively common self-reference. The name derives from the kiwi, a flightless bird, which is native to, and the national symbol of, New Zealand. Unlike many demographic labels, its usage is not considered offensive; it is generally viewed as a symbol of pride and endearment for the people of New Zealand..” (Wikipedia with editing)
New Zealand Stamp with Kiwi ©WikiC
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“And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world. Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God.”
(1 John 4:14-15 KJV)
“Hosanna, Messiah Has Come” ~ Choir and Solo by Lisa Brock
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Lee's Birdwatching Adventures Plus 