New guinea bird with horned head. Cassowaries

Cassowaries- the only genus of large flightless birds of the cassowary family of the cassowary order, living in the tropical forests of New Guinea and northeast Australia. The name of the bird is borrowed from the Indonesian language, which is of Papuan origin - kasu weri, which means "horned head" in translation.

Cassowaries are large flightless birds. Adult individuals of the helmeted (or ordinary) cassowary reach up to 1.5-1.8 meters in height (some individuals can reach two meters) and weigh about 60 kg. Therefore, cassowaries are the most large birds in Australia and the second largest bird in the world (after the African ostrich).

Cassowaries belong to the subclass ratites, which also includes emus, rhea, ostriches, moas and kiwis. To date, the cassowary genus includes three species:

Helmeted or common cassowary

Muruk or muruk cassowary

orange-necked cassowary

All three species have an outgrowth on the head called a helmet. It consists of a horny substance around a hard material that has a spongy texture. There are several versions about the functions of this helmet. Perhaps it is a secondary sexual characteristic. According to another version, Kazura use a helmet to break through the undergrowth while running. It is also possible that cassowaries use it as a weapon in dominance fights or as a means of raking up fallen leaves while foraging. The last three versions are disputed by biologist Andrew Mack based on his own observations. However, earlier papers by Crome and Moore noted that birds bow their heads while running. Mack and Jones suggest that helmets play a role in beep communication. This assumption is based on the fact that at least the muruk and the helmeted cassowary make low-frequency sounds, which can be a means of communication in dense rainforests.

The head, and in two species of cassowaries also the neck, is unfeathered. These two species also have hanging catkins. By the number of catkins, it is easy to determine the type of cassowary: they are absent in the muruk, one in the orange-necked cassowary, and two in the helmeted cassowary.

The plumage is black, has some features. Like emus (the closest relatives of cassowaries), cassowary feathers are devoid of hooks that give elasticity to the feather. The wings of cassowaries are rudimentary, with reduced flight feathers to 5-6 needle-like trunks (from 6 to 20 cm long in adult birds).

Female cassowaries are larger than males, more brightly colored and have larger helmets. Juveniles have brown plumage, they lack bright colors on the neck, and the outgrowths on the head are much smaller than in adult birds.

Kazurara's legs are very strong, three-toed, have sharp claws. The dagger-shaped claw of the inner finger is about 120 mm long. This claw is especially dangerous, as the cassowary is capable of killing with one blow. Cassowaries are capable of reaching speeds of up to 50 km/h when running through dense forest, can jump up to 1.5 meters in height, and are very good swimmers.

Cassowaries live in the rainforests of New Guinea and northeast Australia. Areas of all three types partially intersect, but cassowaries different types avoid meetings, preferring to settle on different height. So the orange-necked cassowary lives mainly in lowland forests, the helmeted cassowary lives at medium altitudes, and the muruk lives in mountain forests. In areas where other species are not found, muruk can descend to sea level.

In Australia, cassowaries presumably lived as early as the Pleistocene. Currently, the helmeted cassowary lives only on the Cape York Peninsula in northern Queensland. However, even here cassowaries are exclusively forest dwellers. The fact that they are sometimes found in the fields is due to deforestation, which leads to the fact that cassowaries are forced to cross open spaces.

In addition, cassowaries live on some islands near New Guinea.

All cassowaries are secretive birds and live in the depths of the forest. They hide long before the appearance of a person. Due to their hidden lifestyle, the orange-necked cassowary and muruk are not well studied.

Excluding the mating season, cassowaries live alone. They are active at night, with a peak of activity during the evening and morning twilight, usually resting during the day. Most of the time they are looking for food, using the old paths through the undergrowth all the time.

Cassowaries feed mainly on fallen fruit or fruit from the lower branches of trees. They also feed on mushrooms, snails, insects, frogs, snakes and other small animals. Cassowaries regularly drink water, which is always available in sufficient quantities in their natural habitat.

The exact breeding season of individual species is unknown. Most populations incubate chicks between July and October, but there have been birds that incubate eggs in other months of the year. The female lays three to eight eggs in a nest made by the male. Females generally do not take part in hatching eggs and caring for chicks. Males incubate the eggs for about two months and then take care of the chicks on their own. After 49-56 days of incubation of eggs, chicks hatch from them.

Little is known about the potential lifespan of cassowaries. Estimates range from 12 to 19 years of age in wild nature. In zoos, cassowaries have reached the age of 40 years.

Other than humans, cassowaries in New Guinea have no natural enemies. For young chicks, the wild dog dingo can be potentially dangerous.

The ranges of the orange-necked and helmeted cassowaries are constantly shrinking, so they are classified as endangered species. Population size is estimated to be between 1,500 and 10,000 individuals. About 40 individuals are kept in captivity in Australia. The decline in populations has led some cassowaries to move out of the rainforest to human habitation, which in turn has led to conflict with gardeners. However, in some places, birds began to be attracted to show tourists. In Australia, the helmeted cassowary is under protection, while on those roads where the appearance of these birds is possible, you can meet road signs about a possible collision with them.

The 2004 edition of the Guinness Book of Records cites the cassowary as the most dangerous bird on earth. Cassowaries are capable of inflicting fatal wounds on an adult. A wounded or driven bird is extremely dangerous. The cassowary is considered one of the most dangerous birds to keep in zoos, based on the frequency and severity of injury to zookeepers. As a result of numerous collisions of cassowaries with humans, large areas of Australian national parks have been temporarily closed to prevent human contact with these birds.

See information about other representatives of the fauna of Australia, among the second animal after the kangaroo, depicted on the coat of arms of Australia - the emu is a group of species of marsupial mammals from the kangaroo family -

Cassowaries are large birds that gave their name to a whole detachment of Cassowaries. In this detachment, besides them, there is only one species of birds - the emu. Also, their distant relatives can be considered African ostriches. In total, three species of cassowaries are known in the world - helmeted, orange-necked and muruk. The name of these birds in Papuan means "horned head".

Helmeted cassowary (Casuarius casuarius).

At first glance, cassowaries look like African ostriches and emus. They have the same small head, long neck and legs, and wings, on the contrary, are underdeveloped. The paws of cassowaries are three-toed (like those of an emu), they are not inferior in strength to their counterparts. But these birds also have a number of unique features. The first thing that catches your eye is the helmet on your head. It consists of spongy tissue, topped with horny substance. The function of this decoration is still unclear, but most likely it is a secondary sexual characteristic and is possibly used to push branches apart in the forest. The head and neck of the cassowary are not feathered, while the skin is colored in bright colours(blue, red, orange) and covered with small folds. The orange-necked cassowary has a fold of skin hanging around its neck - a kind of earring, while the helmeted cassowary has two. In addition, the inner toe of these birds is armed with a 12 cm claw, which is used for protection. These feathers are very unusual: they grow in pairs, their fans are untwisted and resemble wool. There are no flight feathers on the wings as such, and their rods have turned into spikes. In addition, the main finger of the wing is armed with a claw. The coloration of all species is the same - pure black (brown in young birds), these species differ from each other only in the presence of ornaments on the neck. Their sexual dimorphism is weakly expressed: females are larger than males. The sizes of all three species are approximately the same: cassowaries reach a height of 1.4-1.5 m, and weigh 60-80 kg.

Kazurs do not have a tail at all, and the feathers of the body hang down like a fringe.

The range of cassowaries is limited to the islands of New Guinea and the northeastern part of Australia. Moreover, all three species are found in the same territories, but prefer to occupy different ecological niches. The orange-necked cassowary inhabits the lowlands, the helmet-bearing cassowary inhabits the middle zone of the mountains, and the muruk inhabits the upper zone. All species inhabit the most remote corners of tropical forests and prefer not to be seen. These birds live alone, are active mainly at night, and prefer to rest during the day. Cassowaries behave cautiously, their voices are rarely heard in the forest. Usually they walk slowly in search of food, but their slowness and secrecy give a deceptive impression. In case of danger, the cassowary starts running through the thicket and deftly maneuvers among trees and bushes. In open areas, it easily accelerates to 50 km / h, while it can jump over obstacles up to 1.5 m high. In addition, these birds are excellent swimmers.

Resting, cassowaries sit on bent legs. This posture is typical for ostriches and emus.

Cassowaries are omnivorous, but prefer plant foods. Their favorite food is tropical fruits and berries. Interestingly, the fruits are not completely digested in the stomach of cassowaries, and bird droppings always contain a lot of seeds.

Young muruk cassowary (Casuarius bennetti) looking for food on the highway.

These seeds not only remain viable, but even increase germination after treatment with gastric juice. In addition to plants, cassowaries eat snails, frogs, insects, small snakes, and sometimes muruk catches fish. Cassowaries often drink, using forest reservoirs, which are numerous in humid forests. Despite the fact that cassowaries eat a lot of succulent food, they, like ostriches, swallow pebbles (gastroliths), which help grind food in the stomach.

These birds do not have a specific breeding season, but nesting occurs most often in the Australian winter and early spring (from July to October). At this time, males divide the territory into sections of 1-5 km². When females appear, they revive and begin to lek. The courtship dance of the cassowary is a bit like the behavior of a turkey: the male puffs up his feathers, his neck puffs up and becomes bright, while he accompanies his actions with a “serenade” that sounds like “boo-boo-boo”. The resulting couple spends several weeks together. Like emus, cassowaries have family chores - the prerogative of males. They equip nests, and females lay eggs in them and ... leave. Cassowary eggs reach a length of 12-14 cm and weigh 500-650 g. Their shell is very dark, its shade varies from almost black to dark olive and dark green.

Cassowary egg.

The male incubates the clutch for about 2 months. The chicks hatch covered in down and are immediately ready to follow their father. He carefully guards them and leads them for 9 months. Chicks are born without a helmet and striped, at the age of 6 months they molt and become covered with brown feathers, at the same time they begin to grow a horn. They reach full development by 2 years, and participate in reproduction from 3 years. In nature, the life expectancy of cassowaries is 12-19 years, but in captivity they live up to 40.

Cassowary with chicks.

These birds have few enemies. In the fauna of Australia and especially New Guinea, there are generally few large animals; of predators, only dingoes are dangerous. Cassowaries defend themselves from enemies by flight or ... attack. Although these birds do not like to show their eyes, but in case of danger they can attack the offender. At the same time, the cassowary warns about the beginning of the attack with ruffled feathers, and then rushes at the enemy, striking with both legs. Strong paws, armed with sharp claws, are capable of inflicting serious wounds, even fatal cases are known.

In this picture, the photographer managed to capture the sudden attack of a cassowary.

Despite the formidable temper, the Papuans have long hunted cassowaries. True, they caught only young birds and chicks. Cassowary meat is tasty, feathers are also used as decorations and claws, from which arrowheads are made. Currently, the number of cassowaries is decreasing, but not because of hunting, but because of habitat reduction. Cassowaries can often be seen in zoos, they tolerate captivity well.

Cassowary birds are very, their weight sometimes reaches 60 kilograms, body height is 1.8 m.

Females are larger than males. Heavy and strong, with powerful legs and bright coloring, the bird lives in Australia.

The head and neck are bluish - of blue color, no feathers.

An ornament in the form of a horn outgrowth on the head is called a helmet. It is intended, most likely, for battles, or for sound communication.

There are two red outgrowths on the neck. The main color of the soft plumage is black.

They love to walk in the bushes, they love to splash in the pond, surprisingly, these birds even know how to swim.

Hidden and cautious, they try to avoid meeting a person. The main food is fruits that have fallen from trees. Do not disdain, this bird and the fish, which she herself catches.

Cassowaries do not know how to fly, wings serve them as an ornament, a little less often for defense. Instead of flight feathers, there are five horny long spines.

In addition to the wings, it can keep the defense with the help of powerful legs. You can take a lot of damage from his hit. The toe has a large, long claw that can tear through an attacker's flesh. When running, it can develop a speed of 50 km / h.

Cassowaries lead a solitary lifestyle. Couples are created only for the duration of the mating season. And the breeding season begins in July and lasts until October. Bird nests are made of leaves and moss and built on the ground.

Cassowary photo

The female will lay 3-5 green-bluish eggs and go to another boyfriend. One egg weighs 500 grams. The male incubates the clutch for about 1.5 months. The born chicks follow the father and are under his protection.

The enemies of the cassowaries are man, the Tasmanian devil. Predators attack chicks, adults are afraid.

Appearance

Cassowaries are large flightless birds. Adult individuals of the helmeted cassowary reach up to 1.5-1.8 meters in height (some individuals can reach two meters) and weigh about 60 kilograms. Therefore, cassowaries are the largest birds in Australia and the second largest birds in the world (after the ostrich).

All three species have an outgrowth on the head called a helmet. It consists of a horny substance around a hard material that has a spongy texture. There are several versions about the functions of this helmet. Perhaps it is a secondary sexual characteristic. According to another version, Kazura use a helmet to break through the undergrowth while running. It is also possible that cassowaries use it as a weapon in dominance fights or as a means of raking up fallen leaves while foraging. The last three versions are disputed by biologist Andrew Mack based on his own observations. However, earlier papers by Crome and Moore noted that birds bow their heads while running. Mack and Jones suggest that helmets play a role in beep communication. This assumption is based on the fact that at least the muruk and the helmeted cassowary make low-frequency sounds, which may be a means of communication in dense rainforests.

The head, and in two species of cassowaries also the neck, is unfeathered. These two species also have hanging catkins. By the number of earrings, it is easy to determine the type of cassowary: they are absent in the muruk, one in the orange-necked cassowary, and two in the helmeted cassowary.

The plumage is black, has some features. Like emus (the closest relatives of cassowaries), cassowary feathers are devoid of hooks that give elasticity to the feather. As a result of this, the feathers of cassowaries and emus are softer and more flexible than those of most other birds. In addition, additional feathers are increased in size (in most birds they are small or hidden) and, together with the main feather, come out of the same feather. Both feathers, which give the plumage of cassowaries and emus their uniqueness, are replaced at the same time during the annual molt. The wings of cassowaries are rudimentary, with reduced flight feathers to 5-6 needle-like trunks (from 6 to 20 cm long in adult birds). The tribes of New Guinea like to use these feathers most of all as ornaments for the nose and ceremonial clothes. The main toe of the wing has a claw, a primitive reptilian heritage. Cassowaries do not have tail feathers.

Female cassowaries are larger than males, more brightly colored and have larger helmets. Juveniles are brown in plumage, lack the bright colors on their necks, and have much smaller head projections than adults.

Spreading

Cassowaries live in the rainforests of New Guinea and northeast Australia. The ranges of all three species partially overlap, but cassowaries of different species avoid encounters, preferring to settle at different heights. So the orange-necked cassowary lives mainly in lowland forests, the helmeted cassowary lives at medium altitudes, and the muruk lives in mountain forests. In areas where other species are not found, muruk can descend to sea level.

In Australia, cassowaries lived presumably already in the Pleistocene. Currently, the helmeted cassowary is found only on the Cape York Peninsula in north Queensland. However, even here cassowaries are exclusively forest dwellers. The fact that they are sometimes found in the fields is due to deforestation, which leads to the fact that cassowaries are forced to cross open spaces.

In addition, cassowaries live on some islands near New Guinea: the helmeted cassowary on the islands of Seram and Aru, the muruk on the islands of Yapen and New Britain, and the orange-necked cassowary on the islands of Yapen and Salawati. However, it is not clear whether cassowaries originally lived there, or whether the current distribution is the result of the young bird trade in New Guinea.

Lifestyle

There are cases of cassowary attacks on people, but this happens mainly as self-defense or in the event of people invading their territory, especially during the upbringing of chicks, and also in case of danger. The attack is usually preceded by a threat posture, in which the cassowary raises its feathers and bows its head to the ground, its neck puffs out, and its body begins to tremble. If this is followed by an actual attack, the cassowary strikes with both legs simultaneously. Dagger-shaped claws can cause severe injuries, including fatal cases.

Nutrition

Cassowaries feed mainly on fallen fruit or fruit from the lower branches of trees. They also feed on mushrooms, snails, insects, frogs, snakes and other small animals. Like other birds, cassowaries swallow stones that serve as gastroliths. Cassowaries regularly drink water, which is always available in sufficient quantities in their natural habitat.

reproduction

The exact breeding season of individual species is unknown. Most populations incubate chicks between July and October, but there have been birds that incubate eggs in other months of the year. The male inspects an area from 1 to 5 km². If a female enters it, the male starts the mating game. At the same time, the male's feathers rise, he begins to circle around the female; the neck puffs up, sparkles especially brightly and the male emits a deaf “boo-boo-boo”.

After mating, the couple stays together for several more weeks. At the same time, the female lays from three to eight eggs in a nest made by the male. Cassowary eggs are pale greenish-blue in color, about 9-14 cm in size and weigh up to 650 grams (only ostrich and emu eggs are larger). Females generally do not take part in hatching eggs and caring for chicks. Often they go to the site to another male, with whom they mate again. Males incubate the eggs for about two months and then take care of the chicks on their own.

After 49-56 days of incubation, the eggs hatch from them. They are light brown in color with dark brown stripes along the entire body. The chicks can run within a few hours after hatching and follow their father for about nine months. At the age of six months, they change color to a single-color brown. Around the same time, the helmet becomes visible. In the second year of life, cassowaries gradually take the form of an adult bird and reach their size. Sexual maturity occurs at three years.

Little is known about the potential lifespan of cassowaries. Estimates range from 12 to 19 years of life in the wild. In zoos, cassowaries have reached the age of 40 years.

Enemies

Other than humans, cassowaries in New Guinea have no natural enemies. For young chicks, the wild dog dingo can be potentially dangerous.

Systematics

Cassowaries belong to the subclass of ratites, which also includes emus, rhea, ostriches, moas and kiwis. To date, the cassowary genus includes three species:

helmeted cassowary - casuarius casuarius
Muruk or muruk cassowary - Casuarius bennetti
orange-necked cassowary - Casuarius unappendiculatus

The existence of a fourth kind Casuarius papuanus disputed by scientists, since the differences with the Muruk cassowary are extremely small.

A total of 22 subspecies of three cassowary species have been described. Often such descriptions were based on captured birds, the origin of which was not known. Since the differences between different genders, ages and individual individuals of birds are not sufficiently studied, the division of cassowaries into subspecies is considered not entirely justified.

fossils

Cassowary fossils are quite rare. Most of the finds are only fragments that cannot be exactly matched to emus or cassowaries. All fossils are found in Australia. One find that can be accurately matched to muruk, from the Pleistocene period, is found in New South Wales.

Role in seed dispersal

Litter of a helmeted cassowary

Cassowaries eat the fruits of more than a hundred species of tropical plants and usually leave viable seeds with dense droppings. Cassowaries are known to disperse seeds over distances of more than a kilometer and thus possibly play an important role in the ecosystem.

Cassowaries and man

V Everyday life Cassowaries have played an important role in the population of New Guinea for many centuries. First, they were hunted for their meat, which is very tasty. The feathers serve as an ornament, and the core of the flight feathers can be used as nose and lip sticks. Claws were used as arrowheads, tools and weapons were made from leg bones.

Cassowaries were considered so valuable that their trade between the Papuans and the sailors of South Asia existed already about 500 years ago. The Papuans brought mainly young birds to the shore, where they exchanged them for goods; on average, one cassowary was worth about eight pigs. It is assumed that the cassowaries of some small islands have thus received their distribution on them.

Apart from practical use, cassowaries played the same spiritual role in the communities of New Guinea. Cassowaries are found in a large number of myths and tales.

Warning about possible appearance cassowaries on the road

The ranges of the orange-necked and helmeted cassowaries are constantly shrinking, so they are classified as endangered species. Population size is estimated to be between 1,500 and 10,000 individuals. About 40 individuals are kept in captivity in Australia. The decline in populations has led some cassowaries to move out of the rainforest to human habitation, which in turn has led to conflict with gardeners. However, in some places, birds began to be attracted to show tourists. In Australia, the helmeted cassowary is under protection, while on those roads where these birds are likely to appear, you can find road signs about a possible collision with them.

The 2004 edition of the Guinness Book of Records lists the cassowary as the most dangerous bird on earth. Usually the bird is quite secretive, however, a disturbed bird can deliver a dangerous blow with its powerful legs. During World War II, the US and Australian military stationed in New Guinea were instructed to avoid contact with these birds. Cassowaries are capable of inflicting fatal wounds on an adult. A wounded or driven bird is extremely dangerous. The cassowary is considered one of the most dangerous birds to keep in zoos, based on the frequency and severity of injury to zookeepers.

As a result of numerous collisions of cassowaries with humans, large areas of Australian national parks have been temporarily closed to prevent human contact with these birds.

Notes

Literature

Jungle hermit / Vasily Klimov // Around the world. - June 2001. - No. 6 (2729).
Fauna of the world. Birds / V. M. Galushin, N. N. Drozdov, V. D. Ilyichev, V. E. Fomin; Under the general editorship. V. E. Sokolova - M.: Agropromizdat, 1991. - 312 p. ISBN 5-10-001229-3
Crome, F., and L. Moore. The cassowary's casque. Emu. - 1988. (English)
The Cassowary in Captivity / Richard Perron // International Zoo News. - 1992. - No. 240 Vol. 39/7. (English)
Josep del Hoyo (u.a.). Handbook of the Birds of the World. Bd 1. Ostrich to Ducks. - Lynx Editions, Barcelona. - 1992. ISBN 84-87334-10-5 (English)
Mack AL, Jones J. Low-frequency vocalizations by cassowaries (Casuarius spp.). The Auk. - 2003. - 120(4):1062-1068 (English)
Readers" Digest, June 2006 issue.
Stay in Touch, Philip Clark (ed), The Sydney Morning Herald, 5 November 1990. Cites "authorities" for the death claim. (English)
Underhill D. Australia's Dangerous Creatures. - Reader's Digest, Sydney, New South Wales. - 1993. ISBN 0-86438-018-6 (English)
Webber, B.L. and Woodrow, I.E. Cassowary frugivory, seed defleshing and fruit fly infestation influence the transition from seed to seedling in the rare Australian rainforest tree, Ryparosa sp. nov. 1 (Achariaceae). - Functional Plant Biology 31. - 2004. - 505-516. (English)