ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, May 28, 1996 TAG: 9605280020
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-3 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
Ostriches are native to South Africa and can weigh from 300 to 500 pounds. An adult stands 7 to 8 feet tall.
Rhea, its smaller look-a-like, weigh in at only 60 pounds. They are thought to have roamed the outback of Australia some 80 million years ago.
Emu have a more rounded back than the other two, like a turtle, and weigh about 100 pounds. They're native to South America.
Ostriches can live 70 years, and produce young for more than half of their lives.
Five years ago, simply selling a pair of emus, for example, could run as high as $40,000 a pair. Now, the money maker is the bird itself.
The skin is used for leather products, the oil for cosmetics, the eyelashes for paintbrushes. Artists decorate the huge, blown-out eggs; car manufacturers use the feathers to pick up dust and static before adding the final paint job.
The meat is about 97 percent fat free and lower in calories than beef.
Ground ratite patties run about $5 per pound; higher-quality cuts can run up to $17.
Sources: American Emu Association; American Ostrich Association
LENGTH: Short : 38 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO:by CNB