RATITÆ

‖Ra‐ti″tæ (rȧ‐tī″tē̍), n. pl. [[NL., fr. L. ratis a raft; cf. L. ratitus marked with the figure of a raft.]] (Zoöl.) An order of birds in which the wings are small, rudimentary, or absent, and the breastbone is destitute of a keel. The ostrich, emu, moa, and apteryx are examples.