What are facts about cassowaries flightless bird?

Answer 1

There are many interesting facts about cassowaries.

There are three species of cassowary: the Southern cassowary in Australia, and the Northern cassowary and Dwarf cassowary (Bennett's cassowary) only found on the island of New Guinea.

Cassowaries live in tropical rain forest as well as bushland and swampy lowlands, and feed mainly on fruits and fungi. Many tropical rain forest trees rely on the cassowary for the dispersal and even germination of their seeds. The seeds pass through the cassowary's digestive system and are excreted into a pile of the cassowary's own dung, meaning the seeds have their own ready-made pile of fertiliser. Therefore, if the cassowary were to become extinct, some trees would also become extinct.

Cassowaries have a casque (helmet) on the top of their head. It is not actually known what the cassowary's helmet is used for, but there are several theories. One theory is that the helmet is used to help the cassowary force its way through the thick undergrowth and vine forests in which it lives. The most likely theory is that, because the helmet continues to grow throughout the cassowary's life, it could be a sign of dominance. Recent scientific research has suggested the helmet may even assist cassowaries in detecting the low vibrating sound made by other cassowaries.

The cassowary female lays eggs in a nest prepared by the male then mates with him and moves on to another male. Like its cousin, the emu, the male raises the young, which incidentally are not all his, until they reach maturity.

The cassowary is endangered in Australia, mainly because of habitat degradation, but also because of feral pigs eating their eggs and trampling their nests, and wild and domestic dogs killing their chicks.

Answer 2

There are only about 1500 cassowaries left in the wild