One-wattled cassowary

Casuarius unappendiculatus

TAXONOMY

Casuarius unappendiculatus Blyth, 1860, aviary in Calcutta.

OTHER COMMON NAMES

English: Northern cassowary; French: Casoar unicaronculé; German: Einlappenkasuar; Spanish: Casuario Unicarunculado.

PHYSICAL CHARACTERISTICS

Height 65–69 in (165–175 cm); weight females 128 lb (58 kg); males 81 lb (about 37 kg). A large cassowary with coarse black plumage, a tall casque, a colorful neck, and one central wattle.

DISTRIBUTION

Northern New Guinea, from western Vogelkop, West Irian, to Astrolabe Bay, Papua New Guinea, and on Satawati, Batanta, and Japen islands.

HABITAT

Mostly lowland areas of rainforest and swamp forest, up to 1,600 ft (490 m).

BEHAVIOR

Assumed to be similar to other cassowaries.

FEEDING ECOLOGY AND DIET

Feeds on fallen forest fruits.

REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY

Birds in breeding condition have been collected in May and June, but nothing else has been reported about its breeding.

CONSERVATION STATUS

The status of the cassowary is uncertain. It requires large areas of undisturbed rainforest to flourish. It is hunted and snared for food, but where large tracts of forest remain, it is secure.

SIGNIFICANCE TO HUMANS

The cassowary is incorporated into the mythology of the indigenous peoples, but it is still hunted by them, and the chicks captured, to be kept in pens in the villages until they are big enough to eat.