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One of my favorite #birds is the endangered southern cassowary.

These shy birds don’t fly, but run fast & swim well. They have a dagger-like middle claw up to 12cm giving them a reputation as the most dangerous bird alive.

The female is larger & more colorful than the male. He incubates the eggs & raises chicks.

Cassowaries play a vital role in Australia by spreading seeds. They are among the closest living species to dinosaurs. Photo: David Clode https://www.australiazoo.com.au/wildlife/our-animals/cassowary/ #nature #SharedPlanet

Cassowary - Australia Zoo

Plan your adventure by learning about the Cassowary and find out some great facts about this and other birds you can meet here at Australia Zoo!
Australia Zoo
#nature #birds #sharedplanet
This entry was edited (1 year ago)
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum

NancyGPT
NancyGPT
• •
We saw one in a creek bed in Northern Queensland near Daintree. Major life highlight.
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum

Sudhir
Sudhir
• •
. Surprising, why female is larger than the male?🤔😜
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum

Champagne
Champagne
• •
well that is the coolest! I had not heard of these birds. So beautiful.
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum

Dane Deasy
Dane Deasy
• •
your description of its claw makes me think of a velociraptor.
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum

Priscilla Haring-Kuipers
Priscilla Haring-Kuipers
• •
impressive beasts ❤️ I 'met one' once while walking in Australia - that is to say I saw one from about 20 meters away ahead on the path and got off the path to cut through some field or other because these beauties and their claws of death will get right-of-way wherever they are 🐥
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum

ArdentArchivist
ArdentArchivist
• •
That dagger-like middle claw is very reminiscent of a velociraptor.
Yikes!
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum

James Bannan
James Bannan
• •
went on a tour in the Daintree many years ago. Australian rangers are remarkably blasé about most highly dangerous flora and fauna, but when confronted with a cassowary, even he said, “Yeah, don’t get too near.”
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum

QuirkyQueer
QuirkyQueer
• •
they are magnificent. I like to think of them as drag Queen emus.
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum

pdb
pdb
• •
Birds — all birds — are dinosaurs. We can get comfortable with the fact. It’s okay to say it!
https://youtu.be/k6SC_UpHX04

More on how to think of the cassowary in evolutionary ‘descent’ terms:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ratite#Evolution

superorder of birds

Contributors to Wikimedia projects (Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.)
in reply to Sheril Kirshenbaum

mrtn
mrtn
• •
a fascinating bird! Never heard of it. Thanks for pointing out to them

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