One of the highlights of our trip was seeing the Southern Cassowary in the wild. There are probably less than 1400 of these birds left in Australia though estimates vary. There are around 500 at Cape Tribulation where we saw this one. I know many people search for them without luck and its not easy to find them in such dense Rainforest.
We were driving down a road to the Jindalba Board walk and as we rounded the bend, it walked out in front of us. I had my camera on my lap so took some images before it slowly disappeared. It just strolled in front of the car, not worried about us at all. I must admit I was shaking, probably with the thrill of the find, I was surprised any of the images turned out!
These large birds can be fierce and have been known to attack people, as usual out of fear when people try to get too close to them or their chicks. They have the reputation of being the most deadly bird in the world. The innermost claw on each foot is elongated and very sharp. The birds will strike out with these in territorial disputes and defensive or offensive behaviour with other animals, including humans.
The cassowary has a distinctive helmet – known as a casque. No-one has really know what it is for bur recently researches at La Trobe University in Melbourne have discovered that it is most likely acts like a radiator or “thermal window” to help the large, flightless birds keep cool in hot weather.
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