It is hard for you to miss the cassowary when you see one – it is one of the largest birds in the world only second to the ostrich in weight. An adult cassowary can grow up to 2 metres tall. This flightless bird is covered in rough shiny black feathers and features brilliant red and blue around the head and neck area. Like the ostrich, it is a flightless bird.
The cassowary is endangered and its current population is estimated to be anywhere between 1500 and 3000 birds. 40 of these are kept in captivity. Immigration over the centuries has seen more of the bird’s natural habitat cleared to make way for human settlement. Cassowaries have become vulnerable to dogs, traffic on roads as well as fatal diseases such as tuberculosis.
Yet the cassowary plays a crucial seed dispersal rile that is key to the continued existence of several plant species in the rainforest. Due to their large size, the cassowary can eat larger fruits which smaller birds would have difficulty with. The bird often swallows the fruit whole and then through its droppings, disperses the undigested seeds around the rainforest. Consequently, the Australian government have put in place measures to protect the bird.
Native to Australia, the cassowary is mainly found in the wet tropical climate of North Queensland and more so in the rainforests of the Cape York Peninsula. Outside Australia, the bird is also found in New Guinea. Other than the ostrich, the cassowary shares attributes with the emu and the kiwi despite the major difference in physical size.
The cassowary is also closely related to the extinct New Zealand Moas and the Madagascan elephant bird – two huge flightless bird species both larger than the ostrich. There are 3 species of the cassowary but only one is found on the Australian continent – the Southern Cassowary.
Indigenous Aborigines used the cassowary’s middle toe as a spear blade. The talon on the cassowary’s middle toe is long and sharp. Despite the relatively shy nature of the bird, it is a force to reckon with when in danger or when protecting its chicks. The cassowary’s strong legs coupled with this huge talon can easily reap through flesh and is known to kill dogs.
The powerful legs of the cassowary also serve another purpose – speed. If you were thinking of outrunning an agitated cassowary, you may want to reconsider – the cassowary has a top speed of 50km/h and can jump as high as 1.5meters. They are also good swimmers and have been observed swimming across Cardwell to Hinchinbrook Island.
The cassowary has a thick bony helmet (or casque) that the bird uses to clear its path through thick rainforest undergrowth. The casque is also an attack weapon when the cassowary is threatened. The female cassowary is larger than the male. During the mating season, it is the male that broods on the eggs before they hatch.
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References:
http://www.amazingAustralia.com.au/animals/cassowary.htm
http://Australian-animals.net/casso.htm
