Cassowary: Dino Birds

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Speaker 1: Hi, I'm Ebony Money and I'm Rick Schwartz. Welcome to Amazing Wildlife, where we explore unique stories of wildlife from around the world and uncovered fascinating animal facts. This podcast is a production of My Heart Radio and San Diego Zoo Wildlife Reliance in international nonprofit conservation organization behind the San Diego Zoo and the Fari bar. Deep in the tropical rainforest of New Guinea and northwestern Australia lives one of the largest living birds. The cassowary is a flightless bird closely related to the emu, and it's notorious for having a lethal kick. But is this reputation based on facts or fiction? Rick will let us know, Plus we'll find out why this threatened species is so important to its forest habitat Rick, Cassowaries are related to emu and the ostrich. How does it compare to its cousins? Well, lebany I think it's fair to say all three species, the ostrich, the emu, and the cast wary are very large flightless birds. The ostrich is definitely the tallest, coming in around nine feet and also the heaviest, way between a hundred and forty three hundred pounds, and although the EMU is taller than the cast wary, cast warieres are heavier than EMUs. But like I said, they are all three very large birds, regardless of who's taller or heavier, And I think it's worth mentioning that although you may not see them sometimes, all three species do have wings, they just tend to be smaller and of course not used for flight. So castawaries have been called living dinosaurs. So besides being a pretty cool nickname, what is that all about, Well, yes, you know it's. Here's the thing. When you look at the castle wary, you can definitely get a feeling that you're looking at a dinosaur. Although current science does show us that there is a connection between birds and dinosaurs, there is still some debate out there on how exactly that connection fits together. But you know, nonetheless, I think it is fair to say that with its large dinosaur like feet and it's very large helmet like structure on its head, when you look at a cast wary in person, it does kind of feel like you're looking back at a living dinosaur. And speaking of who's related to who, I was reading that there are actually three species of this rare bird the Cassowary. How did they differ. It's interesting, Ebony. I think at first glance they kind of all do look the same, but when you take a moment, you can see the differences between all three, and those three being the dwarf Cassuary, the Northern Cassowary and the Southern Cassuary. Now going back to the first one, the dwarf cast wary. It is native to higher elevations of New Guinea and can also be found on the island of New Britain. It is smaller than other species and doesn't have much coloration on its neck, is the other cast waring species do. When we talk about the Northern castuary. It inhabits New Guinea's northern lowlands and lie the other cast waries. It has a dark black plumage and the skin on its face is blue, but the skin on its neck can have some bright yellows or red as well as their wattle and the species you can see at the San Diego Zusafari Park. The Southern cast wary is found in New Guinea and islands around New Guinea and also Australia. They are the largest of the three species and also have that beautiful black plumage that is almost iridescent indirect sunlight. Their face tends to have more blue skin with red and purples along the neck and the two wattles, and of course all three species have a large helmet like cask on their head that's made of keratin. Okay, let's back up just a moment. What are wattles and cask? What part of the cast wary um exactly are you talking about? I apologize, evenue, and I thank you for calling me out on that, because sometimes I forget about these animal terms in my world are common everyday language, but not necessarily common vocabulary for everybody else. A wattle spelled with ts W A T T l E is a fleshy carn uncle, and I know car uncle also probably is the term people are familiar with. It's a kind of considered a fleshy growth hanging from various parts of the head or neck of a bird or mammal. So car uncles in birds include those found on the face, such as wattles, do laps, snoods, and earlobes. And I know a lot of those terms are kind of like what, but you know, think like if you look at a turkey, and they have all of that weird skin stuff hanging off. Each one of those has a particular name, depending upon where it hangs off the face of the animal or the body. A cask spelled c a s q u e is a bony extension of the head covered in keratin. In the case of the cast wary, they tend to stand upright, almost like the dorsal fin of a shark or a dolphin, but you're not quite as high, of course, and some may find this surprising. The inside is a honeycomb spongey structure which connects to the ear canals, while the outer layer is hard and usually light to dark in color. Some people have even compared it to sort of that turtle shell color. Now, going back to the part where it's spongey and connected to the ear nows, there are some theories how this might help them here or communicate with each other, but we're still looking into that. Thanks Rick, thanks for clearing that up. So I want to switch gears a bit here and ask about something that cassuaries seem to be also known for, and that's for being dangerous. Other large flightless birds like the emu, have had documented acts of aggression. But it's the cassuary that has a notorious reputation. According to folklore, cassuaries can be aggressive and even dangerous. Rick, is that reputation fair? I think it's fair to say that you should always respect a bird the size of a castuary or emu or ostrich. I mean, they're as big as we are. And although they do have an incredibly powerful kick, one that could kill that, they don't purposely seek out the opportunity to hurt others or act aggressively just for no reason. In fact, cassuaries have shown time and time again they would rather avoid conflict. They refer to quietly disappear into their surroundings when they perceive any sort of danger. Now that said, if they feel cornered or attacked and do not have the ability to safely escape or leave the threatening situation, they are indeed able to defend themselves and they're young. Very well. Thanks for clearing that up, and Rick, The cassowaries claws probably add to the birds sometimes fearsome reputation. What can you tell us about these claws? Oh? Yes, those claws are a big part of that deadly kick, And yes it is the strength of that kick that really packs the punch. But you combine now without large three and a half to four inch long claw that they have on each foot, well you can imagine the damage that can inflict. It believed that the combination of that claw and a powerful kick can easily disembowel a predator. Wow. So, while we're on the topic of predators, I read that the cassowary is said to be capable of killing a lion. First. If that's true, do lions prey on castowaries? Oh, man ebbony, It is amazing sometimes when it gets published. I mean, lions don't even live in the same areas as castouaries, so I don't know how someone would have come up with that conclusion. But you know that said crocodiles, dingoes, and pythons are natural predators to the cast wary, and more often than not, these predators will hunt younger cast waries they aren't fully grown, because adults are very well equipped with defending themselves. Now, if a predator should come across a father castuary with young he would definitely do everything he can to defend his offspring. Beware. Okay, so the skin on the castuaries neck and face is brightly colored blue, which you mentioned earlier, which truly stands out rick in the rainforest habitat. Does this coloring have a benefit, maybe to help the cassuary go undetected. Yeah, it really is fascinating ebony. The bright colors that can be found on the face, neck, and waddles of the cast wary are still kind of a mystery for those who study the cassowary, but currently it's leave. These colors are away for the birds to indicate things like mood or temperament, or possibly a way to relay other social cues to other castwaries, and as far as being able to blend into their environment. Even with their large size and bright colors on their face and neck, cast waries easily disappear right into their environment when they want to. Again keep in mind they live in these forested areas. In fact, you are more likely to find evidence of a cast wary in an area, such as scrapings on the ground or droppings, than you are to actually see a cast wary in the wild. And this part is something that I thought was pretty cool. The bright colors are not only limited to the cassewaries, face and neck. As we talked about in previous episodes, eggs can be particularly vulnerable to pray in nature. Can you talk about the unique way casseary eggs go undetected first and foremost, I mean, I want to just put it out their eye. As an animal expert, in with someone who's lived my life study animals, I think the color of cast wary eggs is truly fascinating. Their eggs. Just to start off with, they measure in a length about five to five and a half inches in length, and they're around three inches wide, and they come out a nice deep green color. And as the time moves forward incubation, that coloration lightens, which is really fascinating. Now some have been recorded closer to a bluish green than a deep green, but either way, that lighter shade starts to appear as the incubation process continues. Now, keep in mind the nests are on the ground, of course, I mean these are huge birds. Can you imagine they're making a nest in the trees. But the ground nests are made by the males. They're made of these natural materials. They'll bring in things from the forest floor such as leaf litter and sticks and everything else, so that green coloration from the egg probably really helps it blend right in with these materials that the dad has made the nest out of, and the nest being made of what's found naturally on the forest floor. Well, the nest itself also camouflages into its surroundings. So speaking of the dad's making and preparing the nest, that brings us to the cassowaries social dynamics and it's impact on breeding. Can you talk about that? I think a great example is the Southern cast wary we have at the Safari Park. These are solitary birds with a male and female only pairing up in the breeding season, and the male builds the nest on the ground like we mentioned, and the female will lay the eggs in the nest, but after that she's on her way. That's it, she's done, she's gone. The male will incubate the eggs and raise the chicks alone. The chicks then will stay with the dad anywhere from nine to eighteen months learning how to basically be a proper cassewary, what to eat, what to avoid, and so on. And after that time with dad learning how to be a cassewary, well, they head out on their own and live their solitary life. Way to go, Dad's So coming up, we'll have a young listener who will have a chance to ask what they want to know about this unique bird. But first this and now it's time for the San Diego Zoom Minute, an opportunity for you to learn what's new at the Zoo and Safari Park. The first known cassuary egg to hatch and have chicks thrive under human care was at the San Diego Zoo in ninety seven. Since that time, the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance has cared for and worked with several castuaries over the years, and with the opening of walk About Australia at the San Diego Zoo SA Fire Park, guests can get an up close and personal view of these amazing Southern castuaries. Watch the feet. Although this bird can't flap away from danger, it can and does run quickly with its powerful legs. A castuary can reach about thirty miles per hour. Today we're learning all about cassuaries and now we're going to toss it to a young listeners question. Joshua would like to know do the cassuaries talks like other birds. Well, Joshua, I think it's fair to say they talk to each other. But let me explain. Although cassuaries can make a few sounds to communicate with each other, they do not have the ability to mimic the human voice like parrots can, so not that kind of talking. The way they talk to each other is through hiss like sounds, whistles, and they even clap their bill for a sharp clapping sound, and this part is pretty cool. They also make a low rumbling sound that humans can't hear because it's below the frequency that our ears can hear. But if you happen to be standing nearby, you can feel the vibration in your chest. This kind of communication allows them to communicate with each other without other species hearing them. What do cassuaries eat? You might be surprised by this answer, Joshua. As big as a cassuary is. Their main source of nutrition is fruit. That's right. Cassowaries prefer fallen fruit, but on occasion they will eat small mammals or small reptiles if the opportunity presents itself. And there has also been observation of them eating carry on, which is and already deceased animal, and then sometimes they'll even consume a little bit of other plant material. Now, Joshua, it is important to note that because of their fruit based diet, cassuaries are very important for maintaining the diversity of the rainforest trees and plants. They are one of the few frugivores or fruit eaters that can disperse the seed of large rainforest fruits and the only one that can carry them over long distances. Now, this is because when they swallow the fruit, they swallow it whole, so digest the pulp as it passes through their system, but the seed is unharmed. And then what happens, Well, they poop them out and many of the seeds need to pass through the digestive system to start the germination process. Without the cassuary, these plants would not be able to reproduce at all. So they play a really important role in the whole ecosystem. And get this, their dung piles, of course, then end up being ready made fertilizer which helps these seeds grow into plants. What's a wattle for, yes, Joshua, those unusual pieces of brightly colored flesh that they have well believe it or not, we are still learning so much about casta waries. We're not really sure. They are so elusive and shy in the wild that we have not had a chance to really observe everything about them, and at the safari park where we have them, we're still doing observations to better understand them and how they communicate. As of right now, it is believed that the waddles might just be decorative ways to help attract a mate, or maybe they use them as a way to communicate to the mood or intentions to other castlewaries, but no one really knows for sure yet more observations are definitely needed. Can castle waries fly, Oh, Joshua, I am happy to report they do not. If they could fly, that would really change how humans would interact with them. Can you imagine a bird weighing close to a hundred pounds landing on your house or trying to perch in a tree in your neighborhood park. Oh, and if they left droppings on your car, well, that would be a lot to clean up. Now worst noting they do have wings, but they're small and lacks some of the same structures as the flighted birds have in their wings. Cass wars also lacks some of the anatomical structures needed for bird flight, like a keel bone. Now this is the bone that the flight muscles attached to. Without that, there's no power behind those wings. Joshua, I want to thank you for sending in your questions. I really enjoy hearing from our young listeners, and for any other curious young listeners out there, we have an email address for you to send in your questions. If you have any questions for the Amazing Wildlife Team, please send an audio recording of your question to Wildlife at I heart media dot com and you might hear your questions on the show. Thanks for listening. We hope you've enjoyed learning more about one of the largest living flightless birds, the cassowary, and be sure to subscribe and tune into next week's episode, in which we bring to the story of a marsupial. They can deliver the strongest bite for its size compared to all other mammals in the world. I'm Abnymone and I'm Rich Schwartz. Thanks for listening. If you would like to find out more about San Diego Zoo Wild Left Alliance, please visit sdz w a dot org. Amazing Wildlife is a production of I Heart Radio. Our producer is Nikkia Swinton and our executive producer is Marcia to Peanut. Our audio engineer and editor is Sierra Spreen. For more shows from my heart Radio, check out the I heart Radio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.