The crested ostrich is often considered the most dangerous bird in the world, at least for humans, although ostriches and emu can also be dangerous.
Cassowaries are shy and often difficult to spot, at least in their natural rainforest habitat. They are not very aggressive and rarely attack. But they can do a lot of damage if provoked or angry. Cassowary attacks are sometimes fatal, including a recent attack in 2019 at a private collection of caged birds in Florida.
Cassowaries are native to Northern Australia, New Guinea and surrounding islands. The family Casuariidae includes three living cassowary species, all in the genus Casuarius:
Cascading casuarina. The southern or double-crested ostrich, with a light blue head, two red braids, and black feathers, is the largest of the crested ostriches.
Their habitat is lowland rainforest, and they are sometimes found in eucalyptus forests or dense wooded swamps.
Casuarius unappendiculatus. The northern cassowary, also known as the single-crested cassowary, inhabits the coastal marshes and lowland rainforests of northern New Guinea. Casuarina bennetti.
The dwarf cassowary is smaller than the other two species of crested ostrich, usually weighing about 50 pounds. Their habitat is at higher altitudes and they are mainly found on steeper mountain terrain.
It is not difficult to imagine that ostriches descended from the ancestors of the dinosaurs. The largest cassowaries can grow up to 6 feet tall and weigh up to 160 pounds. These large birds cannot fly, but their powerful legs propel them away at high speeds.
They are excellent swimmers and can move quickly both on land and in water. Cassowaries have been recorded running at 31 miles per hour through the rainforest.
Their powerful legs also help them jump up to 7 feet straight into the air. Their legs are also used to deliver powerful blows, and they can use sharp dagger-like claws, up to 4 inches long, to cut and stab any animal that poses a threat, including whole human.
The crested ostrich’s favorite food is fruit that falls in the rainforest, and their claws are useful for scraping fruit off the forest floor. But they will also eat other foods, including insects, snails, mushrooms, and sometimes dead animals. They can also catch fish by sitting in the stream and spreading their feathers to form a kind of web.
The females lay eggs in a nest on the forest floor. There are usually about three eggs in the nest and the male sits on them for about 50 days until they hatch. An ostrich egg can weigh about 10 average chicken eggs!
Cassowaries are culturally important to some Aboriginal groups, and sometimes appear in traditional ceremonies, dances and dream stories. Some of these indigenous groups are now involved in ostrich conservation using traditional ecological knowledge along with modern science.
Publication: May 2020. Author: Office of Scientific Reference, Library of Congress
Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education