Rhe″a, n.(Zoöl.) Any one of three species of large South American ostrichlike birds of the genera Rhea and Pterocnemia. Called also the American ostrich.
☞ The common rhea, or nandou (Rhea Americana), ranges from Brazil to Patagonia. Darwin's rhea (Pterocnemia Darwinii), of Patagonia, is smaller, and has the legs feathered below the knee.