Gj. Fernandez et Jc. Reboreda, ADJACENT NESTING AND EGG STEALING BETWEEN MALES OF THE GREATER RHEA RHEA-AMERICANA, Journal of avian biology, 26(4), 1995, pp. 321-324
In a three year field study on a population of 350 Greater Rheas Rhea
americana we followed the fates of 138 nests. In four of these nests w
e observed that, instead of one, there were two males sitting. These m
ales were less than one metre apart and during the incubation period,
they stole eggs from each other. There were no signs of aggression bet
ween them. The total number of eggs in these adjacent or double nests
was similar to that in single nests. Each double nest began as a singl
e nest but during incubation, a second male sat beside the first male
and started stealing eggs. We discuss possible functional and mechanis
tic explanations of this apparently misdirected behaviour.