Is the Cassowary Dangerous?

The Cassowary has a reputation of being the deadliest bird. It’s dual-natured; one part is shy and reclusive and the other is aggressive.

This bird lives in the rain forests of Australia. It eats fruits, berries, shoots and sometimes a rat or snake. It is a blue-headed, red-wattled bird with a fringe of black feathers. It is the third largest bird on the planet. It’s the heaviest bird in Australia and the second heaviest bird in the world.

Hundreds of people are attacked each year by these birds. There has been only one fatality and that occurred when two boys on April 6th, 1926 caught a Cassowary. They were beating it when the bird knocked the youngest boy down. His older brother whacked the bird and got his attention. When he tried to run the boy tripped and fell. The Cassowary’s claw ripped into his throat, hitting the jugular. The boy got up and ran, covering the wound the best he could. He died later that day.

75% of the attacks on humans come from humans feeding the birds. These deadliest birds become more aggressive toward people to get more food. They expect all people to give them food and will take it from them. 5% of the attacks on people came from the bird defending it’s natural resources. 15 % of attacks were in it’s defense from being attacked by humans. Only 7% of Cassowary attacks were in defense of it’s young.

The natives use the Cassowary’s sharp claws as spear points for their spears. They also trade Cassowarys with other tribes. They keep them as pets when they are young. As they grow older and more aggressive and start attacking the tribes-people they are killed or kept in cages were they can barely move around. They are also kept for their feathers.

This bird has more to fear from man than we do from it.