Endangered southern cassowary chick leaves school for the rainforest
A lost chick with yellow and black stripes at the Mission Beach State School decided sharing lunchboxes with the school children was its best chance of getting a good feed. Thankfully, the school recognised the young bird as an endangered southern cassowary and called wildlife officers.
Senior Wildlife Officer Alex Diczbalis said that male southern cassowaries push their young away when the males think they can fend for themselves, usually between 8–18 months old, and this chick was too young to be on his own.
“This was a unique situation as the chick wasn’t ready to look after itself,” Mr Diczbalis said.
“As their rainforest habitat overlaps with our suburbs, we find southern cassowaries on our streets in the Wet Tropics, and, like the chick at the school, they can start to recognise humans as a food source.”
Feeding cassowaries changes their natural behaviour and puts these fascinating birds at risk. It can even impact the important work they do in rainforest seed germination. While people may think they are helping, human food and fruit are not suitable for the southern cassowary, and ultimately, they are conditioning the birds to people, placing cassowaries at risk.
Mr Diczbalis explained when wildlife officers get a call about an abandoned, sick or injured cassowary, they must assess the bird and situation.
“We have specialised equipment and a range of management options. Southern cassowaries are large birds and can pose significant risks to personal safety, so we discourage the public from approaching or handling the birds.
“With abandoned chicks, we prefer them to reunite naturally with their male guardian. This process can take 24 to 48 hours. But, if dad can’t be located, we need to act. We take the abandoned birds into the Garners Beach Cassowary Rehabilitation Centre near Mission Beach.”
At Garners Beach, trained wildlife officers work alongside vets and community group volunteers to care for southern cassowaries.
The custom-built facility has 6 large, screened pens as close to their natural habitat as possible. The pens are screened so the birds don’t see humans, and other wild cassowaries can’t see them because they are territorial.
At the centre, the team monitors and feeds the birds until they are healthy enough for release. Their rehabilitation time varies depending on their age and condition.
“As well as abandoned or orphaned chicks, we care for birds struck by vehicles and assist others trapped in paddocks or fences,” Mr Diczbalis said.
“Sometimes we can treat them in the wild, but other times we need to bring them to the centre. Ideally, we want them back in their home range as soon as possible.
“Some birds also need time to forget that humans are a food source. They must relearn how to forage in the rainforest for fallen fruit.”
At Garners Beach, volunteers from the local community group, the Community for Coastal and Cassowary Conservation (C4), feed the cassowaries morning and night without interacting with the birds. C4 has been instrumental in the centre’s sustainability and works to revegetate southern cassowary habitat.
Once the cassowaries are healthy again, wildlife officers identify the best location for their release.
Mr Diczbalis said the chick from the school will probably be released in an area further west of Mission Beach, connected to the Wet Tropics World Heritage Area.
“We try to keep the release on Country, if possible, and invite Traditional Owners to the release as the southern cassowary is a culturally significant species.
“Releasing a southern cassowary back to the wild is a celebration. These beautiful birds are the protectors of the rainforest.”