CASSOWARY > The Most Dangerous & Killer Bird of the Present World : Temporal range : Pliocene to present. KINGDOM : Animalia, PHYLUM : Chordata, CLASS : Aves, ORDER : Casuariformes, FAMILY : Casuaridae, GENUS : Casuarius. SPECIES : Six. These are flightless birds without a kill on their sternum bone. Native to the tropical forests of New Guinea, nearby islands and N. E Australia. They are the 3rd tallest & 2nd heaviest living birds, smaller only than Ostrich & Emu. They mainly feed on fruits but by nature they are omnivorous, if provoked, they could inflict fatal injurious to animals and human beings. Females are bigger than males. Height : 4.9 to 6.6 feet and weighing upto 58.5 kilograms. They have. small wings. Their three-toed feet have sharp claws. The second toe(the inner one) has a dagger like 5 long claw. When they kick at their victims with their very powerful legs, the 5 long dagger like claw causes fatal injuries to the victim. The birds could run up to 31mph through the dense forest and jump up to 4.9. They are also good swimmers. The males remain in the same territory for most of their lives while the females courtship several males and move around all the territories. Breeding season starts in May or June. Females lay 3 to 8 large green or pale eggs at a time which measures about 3.5 to 5.5. The hatching period is 50-52 days. During World War I, American and Australian troops were warned to steer clear of the birds. As per official records obtained in 2003 there were 150 attacks on human beings by these birds, among which one 16 year old boy died on the spot and the rest were critically injured. Apart from the official record there were many cases of death from CASSOWARYs attack in the remote village areas of the islands which were not reported officially. Source : Ornithologist JARED DIAMOND
Posted on: Sun, 04 Jan 2015 12:18:26 +0000
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