Rod Warnock
12-04-2011, 03:15 PM
Southern Cassowary (Casuarius casuarius) Etty Bay Queensland
Canon EOS 7D Lens 400mm L USM ISO800 F6.3 1/640 available light 17 July 2011
During the all to brief session with this species at Etty Bay I had positioned myself so that bird would pass me by on way to rainforest proper. Naturally it soon meant that portraits were mandatory. The head casque had been in the literature described variously as a bony skull extension , or as a horn however a more recent investigation has revealed it to be keratinous structure containing cellular sponge. It can be depressed when pressed sideways but not from the narrow aspect. Cassowaries can run at speed in rainforest and hold head straight out in front of the body in doing so can crash into trees. See an abstract at: http://www.publish.csiro.au/?act=view_file&file_id=MU9880123.pdf for a more detailed discussion of this shock absorbing appendage. That given I would not like to be butted in the face by that casque !!
Thanks for viewing
Best regards
Rod Warnock
Canon EOS 7D Lens 400mm L USM ISO800 F6.3 1/640 available light 17 July 2011
During the all to brief session with this species at Etty Bay I had positioned myself so that bird would pass me by on way to rainforest proper. Naturally it soon meant that portraits were mandatory. The head casque had been in the literature described variously as a bony skull extension , or as a horn however a more recent investigation has revealed it to be keratinous structure containing cellular sponge. It can be depressed when pressed sideways but not from the narrow aspect. Cassowaries can run at speed in rainforest and hold head straight out in front of the body in doing so can crash into trees. See an abstract at: http://www.publish.csiro.au/?act=view_file&file_id=MU9880123.pdf for a more detailed discussion of this shock absorbing appendage. That given I would not like to be butted in the face by that casque !!
Thanks for viewing
Best regards
Rod Warnock