| Sumario: | The lesser rhea (family Rheidae) is a
flightless large bird of South America, threatened
due to habitat loss, hunting and egg collecting,
with special concern in Northern Patagonia. Diet
and food availability were estimated throughout
the year by micro-histological analysis and
point-quadrat transects in a landscape inside
and another outside the Payunia Reserve,
the northernmost part of the Rhea pennata
pennata distribution. Significant differences
were detected by Kruskall-Wallis ANOVA,
food selection by Chi-square test and Bailey’s
confidence interval. A strong food selection
characterized the diet of lesser rheas, dominated
by leaves of shrubs and forbs, complemented by
dicot seeds and a few insects. This agrees with
the documented low dietary overlap with other
herbivores in Payunia. Dietary changes agree
with the expected from the selective quality
hypothesis. Food availability was better inside
than outside the protected area, with probable
conservation effects for lesser rheas. Seeds,
forbs and soft grasses could be for lesser rheas
some key food resources to survive during
unfavorable seasons in arid environments
without "mallines", as Payunia. Shrubby patches,
with high availability of preferred food items (tall
shrubs and forbs), stood out as key habitats.
Therefore, avoiding fire and woody plant removal
is crucial for the conservation of lesser rheas in
the northern of its range.
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