Infrared thermography is an innovative tool that has been used in several studies involving animal. This tool used to study heat stress, thermoregulation, behavior, disease diagnosis, mainly in the animal production and animal welfare. Wild birds are animals that get tense with the presence of man in his environment, causing changes in its thermal physiology and behavior. In the Brazilian semiarid, high temperatures cause further stress the birds, in studies involving animal welfare and animal production is important to use procedures and tools that do not cause stress to the animal, hence the implementation of infrared thermography. The Rhea americana is a wild bird, native to Brazil, which is gaining market share because of its meat is healthy and other products that are extracted from it. Little is known about the thermal physiology and behavior of this ratita, it is essential to improve poultry facilities in order to provide a pleasant environment and increase production. Birds and other ratites as the ostrich, emu, kiwi and cassowary use some body areas to dissipate body heat, the areas are: legs, beak and neck. All these body areas used by birds to dissipate heat were found using infrared thermography. Being a ratita, Rhea Americana can use the same body regions to reduce heat stress. So, infrared thermography is critical to the thermoregulatory studies of rheas in hot environments.