Be Cass-o-wary Trivia Quiz

Answer: three

There are three cassowary species: the dwarf cassowary, the northern cassowary and the southern cassowary. They live in the tropical rainforests of New Guinea and north-eastern Australia.

Answer: All of them

Cassowaries belong to a family of flightless birds called ratites. This family includes emus, rheas, ostriches and kiwis.

Answer: fruit

Cassowaries feed mostly on fruit but will also eat seeds, fungi, insects and small vertebrates.

Answer: casque

The casque is neither hollow or solid. Instead, it's filled with thin fibres. Scientists still aren't entirely sure what the purpose of the casque is. It may be used to attract a mate or amplify the sounds of its calls.

Answer: male only

Cassowaries breed in May and June. Females lay between three and eight large green or blue-green eggs in a pile of vegetation. However, she takes no responsibility for the survival of the eggs or chicks. The male incubates the eggs for around fifty days and will care for the chicks until they're at least nine months old.

Answer: True

Like most wild animals, cassowaries are usually shy and prefer to avoid people. However, if feeling threatened, they can be very aggressive. Their powerful legs are armed with sharply-clawed feet which can cause nasty injuries. 75% of all recorded attacks have come as a result of people hand-feeding the birds, which lures them into suburban areas and makes contact with humans more likely.

On April 6th, 1926, 16-year-old Phillip McClean and his 13-year-old brother, Granville, were retrieving a stray horse on a bushland property near Mossman, Queensland, Australia, when they were attacked by a cassowary. Whilst Granville managed to run to safety, Phillip wasn't so lucky. In his rush to escape the agitated bird, he fell and was repeatedly kicked in the head and neck. He bled to death after the cassowary's sharp claws severed his jugular vein. This is the only known human fatality from a cassowary attack.

Answer: black

Cassowary chicks and juveniles are have brown feathers.

Adult southern cassowaries have black feathers, grey legs and a bright blue head and neck with a red 'wattle' hanging from the throat. Adult northern cassowaries also have black feathers, grey legs and blue heads, but the skin on the neck is bright yellow. Dwarf cassowaries, the smallest species, have black feathers and black faces with bright blue necks.

Answer: fifty kilometres

Cassowaries are very agile, able to run at speeds of up to 50 kph. They can jump nearly six feet in the air and are also very good swimmers.

Answer: True

Cassowaries are listed as endangered due to habitat destruction and the introduction of predators such as dogs, cats and foxes. Hand feeding the birds also poses a threat, as it lures them into suburban areas, meaning contact with humans becomes more common.

Answer: by spreading the seeds of the plants they eat

When a cassowary poops, it spreads the seeds of the plants that it feeds on.