THE OSTRICH 25 



says Dr. Wallace, " about the vast mountain forests that 

 cover the island, feeding chiefly on fallen fruits, insects, or 

 crustacese." 



The four or five eggs laid by the hen-bird are green in 

 colour, and will usually be found lying on a bed of green 

 leaves. 



The New World, too, has its " Ostrich," and he is far 

 more like the real Ostrich of Africa and Arabia than either 

 the Australian Emeu or the Malayan Cassowary. 



True, this bird, the RHEA, has not the beauty of 

 the African bird. He lacks the splendid white curling 

 plumes, and the brilliant black and white colouring. Also 

 his five feet of height compare poorly with his cousin's 

 eight. Nevertheless his thick coat of ashy grey feathers, 

 tipped with white on tail and wings, has its market value. 



That is one of the reasons why so many of his tribe are 

 killed, every year, on the great level pampas which are his 

 home. It is dreadful to think how pitilessly they are 

 being exterminated in one place after another. Four 

 hundred thousand a year, is one computation of the 

 number slaughtered. 



If such destruction goes on much longer, the wild 

 Rhea will soon be as rare a sight on the pampas as the 

 great bison has become on the North American prairies. 



Half- wild Rheas are common enough on many of the 

 estancias of Argentina. Land owners brought in wild ones 

 and let them loose among the cattle. They did no harm, 

 and it was pleasant to see the big birds stalking about. 

 Thus, being unmolested, they increased greatly, and it is 

 not uncommon for any one who is riding through one of 

 these cattle runs to see great groups of some forty or fifty 

 Rheas feeding quite close to the road, not in the least 

 scared by the frequent passing of mounted men. 



