» ratite bird

Noun (1 meaning)

1. flightless birds having flat breastbones lacking a keel for attachment of flight muscles: ostriches; cassowaries; emus; moas; rheas; kiwis; elephant birds.

ratite, ratite bird, flightless bird

ratite bird is the opposite of:
ratite bird is a type of:
  • bird (noun) - warm-blooded egg-laying vertebrates characterized by feathers and forelimbs modified as wings
types of ratite bird:
  • cassowary (noun) - large black flightless bird of Australia and New Guinea having a horny head crest
  • elephant bird, aepyornis (noun) - huge (to 9 ft.) extinct flightless bird of Madagascar
  • emu, Dromaius novaehollandiae, Emu novaehollandiae (noun) - large Australian flightless bird similar to the ostrich but smaller
  • kiwi, apteryx (noun) - nocturnal flightless bird of New Zealand having a long neck and stout legs
  • moa (noun) - extinct flightless bird of New Zealand