THE LARGEST LIVING BIRD 277 



in those regions of southern and eastern Africa wherein it is 

 now protected. The value in America of a full-grown African 

 Ostrich is $250. 



Fortunately, the Ostrich farms of South Africa, California, 

 and Arizona have proven completely successful, and bid fair 

 to perpetuate this grandest of all feathered creatures long after 

 the last wild flock has been destroyed. If many Ostriches 

 still remain in the Egyptian Soudan, the stringent game laws 

 recently enacted to protect the wild life of that region will 

 go far toward perpetuating them. 



The Rhea, or South American Ostrich,^ is a bird which 

 is so constantly overshadowed by the larger and more showy 

 African ostrich that it is not appreciated at its true zoological 

 value. In height it stands about 5 feet, its bulk is only about 

 one-half as great as that of the African ostrich, and its plu- 

 mage has much less value. Nevertheless, the adult bird, in 

 full plumage, is a fine creature, of a beautiful bluish-gray or 

 drab color, and when it opens its wings they seem surprisingly 

 long. A fine male Rhea "showing off" its plumage is an ob- 

 ject which always commands admiration. 



This bird inhabits Patagonia, the Argentine Republic, 

 and the more remote plains of Uruguay and Paraguay. Fre- 

 quently half -grown birds find their way into the wild-animal 

 markets so easily that they sell at from $40 to $50 each. 

 Great quantities of Rhea feathers are used in the manufacture 

 of feather-dusters. The importers claim that these feathers 

 come from birds reared and kept in captivity, but that claim 

 is vigorously disputed by Dr. W. J. Holland, who asserts in 



' Rhe'a americana. 



