CASSOWARY

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Context:

World Cassowary Day 2024 is celebrated every year on September 26.

Key facts

Cassowaries are flightless birds of the genus Casuarius in the order Casuariiformes. They are classified as ratites: flightless birds without a keel on their sternum bones.

Subspecies

The most common, the southern cassowary, is the third-tallest and second-heaviest living bird, smaller only than the ostrich and emu. The other two species are represented by the northern cassowary and the dwarf cassowary.

Appearance, habitat and IUCN status:

• Casuarius casuarius:The southern, or double-wattled cassowary, with a bright blue head, two red wattles,  and black feathers,  is the largest of the cassowaries. Their habitat is the lowland rainforest, and occasionally they are found in eucalyptus forests or forested swamps. The Southern Cassowary is a direct descendant of the dinosaurs. IUCN status: Least Concern.
• Casuarius unappendiculatus:  The Northern Cassowary, also known as the single-wattled cassowary,  inhabits the coastal swamps and lowland rainforests of northern New Guinea. IUCN status: Least Concern.
• Casuarius bennetti: The dwarf cassowary is smaller than the other two species of cassowary, usually weighing around 50 pounds. Their habitat is at a higher altitude,  and they are generally found in more steep mountainous terrain. IUCN status: Least Concern.

Diet

Around 90% of the cassowary diet consists of fruit, although all species are opportunistic omnivores.

Special features

The largest cassowaries can stand as high as six feet and weigh up to 160 pounds.   These large birds cannot fly, but their extremely powerful legs propel them at great speeds. They are strong swimmers and can move quickly on both land and water. Cassowaries have been clocked running as fast as 31 miles per hour through the rain forest.

Ecosystem services

They remain a significant disperser of seeds from native plants between rainforest patches, and as such, cassowaries remain essential in maintaining native plant diversity within these fragmented patches.

Threat

Targeted hunting, habitat loss and fragmentation. logging activities are a prime threat to northern cassowary populations.

Conservation

Cassowaries are culturally important for some Aboriginal groups, several of these indigenous groups are now involved in cassowary conservation, using traditional ecological knowledge along with modern science. Every year, World Cassowary Day is observed on September 26 to draw international attention to the reasons these birds are important for the world at large and need to be protected.

Source:

https://www.loc.gov/everyday-mysteries/zoology/item/worlds-most-dangerous-bird/

https://www.downtoearth.org.in/wildlife-biodiversity/world-cassowary-day-2024-why-the-worlds-most-dangerous-bird-is-itself-in-danger

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cassowary