Fam. I. Casuariidae.–Following Professor Salvadori,[[21]] Cassowaries may be divided into two groups: the first with the helmet laterally compressed, and the second where it is triangular and pyramidal, or even depressed. They are all large birds, though smaller than Emeus, which are only surpassed in size among existing forms by the Ostrich; the colour of the coarse but glossy hair-like plumage is black, and similar in both sexes; the hen is bigger than the cock, as is also the case in the Dromaeidae and Apterygidae.
Of the first of the above groups, Casuarius tricarunculatus, from Warbusi in New Guinea, which is possibly a "sport," has two lateral wattles on the fore-neck and a third small median caruncle at a lower level. C. bicarunculatus, of the Aru Islands, has two long distant reddish-violet wattles, a black casque, bluish-green head, and blue neck with some red behind. C. galeatus of Ceram, the species first known to ornithologists, is similarly coloured, though less brightly, and has the flesh-coloured throat-wattles close together, and a naked reddish-purple space on each side of the neck. The larger C. australis of North-East Australia has a higher helmet, a brighter blue throat, and a few scattered hairs on the wattles, which Wall, who discovered the species, said were coloured with blue and scarlet. C. beccarii of the Aru Islands, Middle and South New Guinea, has the front and top of the casque black, its sides greenish, and its back yellowish; the head is grey-blue, the throat and sides of the neck are blue, the hind-neck is red and orange, a yellow streak running across to the mandible; a bare space on each side of the base of the neck is flesh-coloured, and the long single neck-wattle of the same colour is somewhat deeply divided at the tip.
Of the second group, C. uniappendiculatus (Fig. 10), of Salawatti and the adjoining parts of New Guinea, has the head, throat, and nape blue, the lower portion of the neck and the median pear-shaped caruncle yellow, the casque dusky olive, and a longitudinal naked space towards the sides of the neck flesh-coloured with a yellow margin. C. occipitalis of Jobi Island is distinguished from the last-named by a large occipital spot of yellow and a paler helmet; while the remaining three forms have no wattle at all. Of these, C. papuanus, of North-East New Guinea, has a dusky black casque, blue head, throat, and fore-neck, grey-green occiput and auricular region, and orange hind-neck changing into rosy flesh-colour towards the sides. C. picticollis of South-East New Guinea has a black helmet, grey-blue occiput, violet-blue nape, pale blue hind-neck, red throat and longitudinal space on the sides of the lower neck; C. bennetti of New Britain differing in having the head and neck of an almost uniform blue. Nestling Cassowaries are clothed in rusty brown, relieved by darker stripes; at a later period they become more tawny, and the black plumage begins to appear; but a few hair-like feathers remain on the head for some time, while the helmet is very gradually developed from a flat Coot-like shield, though the gaudy colours of the neck and wattles are assumed much earlier.[[22]]
All the species of this family inhabit wooded country, commonly of the densest description, though often found in more open scrub and in the neighbourhood of creeks and watercourses. Naturally shy but inquisitive, they have been rendered doubly wary by man's persecution since their haunts have been invaded by colonists. They dislike the sun, and emerge from cover only in the morning and evening, seeking their favourite spots, where they feed chiefly on fallen fruit, varying this diet with insects and crustaceans. Berries, leaf-buds, and bulbs are, however, also eaten, with grit and pebbles for digestive purposes, and in captivity they are almost omnivorous.
Fig. 10.–One-wattled Cassowary. Casuarius uniappendiculatus. × 1⁄14. (From Nature.)
In this state they become extremely tame, and are kept like fowls by the natives of some districts, who consider the flesh very palatable; while in Queensland the adults are said to be hunted with dogs. The plumage is used for the manufacture of mats, rugs, head-ornaments, and the like. Cassowaries run with wonderful swiftness, though rather heavily, diving into the bushes at a moment's notice, or aiding themselves by their wings, and leaping over obstacles as much as six feet high, if shelter is not readily available. They usually rest on the whole of the metatarsus, but sleep on the breast, or perhaps occasionally on the side; at other times they will dance about with contortions of the neck, or roll on the ground like playful monkeys. Old males become very fierce when driven to bay, kicking out in front or sideways, ruffling up their feathers and using their beaks at the same time. In the wet season swimming is a common practice, wide rivers being crossed with ease, and in the absence of other bathing-places the sea is often utilised. The note in a state of excitement is a sort of grunt or snort, the call to the young being of a lowing nature; but the ordinary voice is loud, guttural, and unearthly, consisting of quickly-repeated croaking sounds, lasting for as long as three minutes, and audible at a distance of a mile, or considerably more. The female is much quieter, while the "Mooruk" (C. bennetti) is stated to utter a low scolding or plaintive whistle. A rough nest of leaves and grass is formed in a depression of the soil, generally below bushes or tangled undergrowth, in which from three to six very large eggs are deposited, placed in the shape of the letter V. These are normally light green in ground colour, with close-set granulations of dark bright green; but one, if not more, is ordinarily of a perfectly smooth texture, and is therefore entirely light green. The cock incubates, it appears, solely, though some say that the hen takes her turn; and the former tends the young when hatched, the period of sitting being about seven weeks. The nest is said to be covered by the parent if left for a time, but this is uncertain, as is the use of the two or three eggs scattered round the nest, which are asserted by natives of widely-distant districts to furnish food for the chicks. After breeding, small flocks are formed in some cases, possibly by the combination of two families. The Ceram species, which seems to have been called "Emeu" or "Ema" by the early Portuguese navigators, often lays in captivity, while C. bennetti has bred in the gardens of the Zoological Society of London.
Fossil remains occur in Australia. Hypselornis sivalensis is an allied form from the Pliocene of the Siwalik Hills in India.
Fam. II. Dromaeidae.–From about the beginning of this century the name "Emeu," used, as mentioned above, in varying form for both the Rhea and the Cassowary, has been restricted to the genus Dromaeus, the members of which stand more than five feet high, though lower on their legs than an Ostrich. D. novae-hollandiae of the interior of Eastern Australia, which extended in times past to Tasmania and the islands in Bass's Straits, is blackish grey, with black tips to the plumage. D. irroratus, a more slender species from West, and probably the adjoining parts of South, Australia, has each feather transversely barred with dark grey and white, and a rufous margin to the black patch at the end. Young birds in down are greyish-white, with longitudinal blackish streaks above, and spots on the head and lower parts. The sexes are similarly coloured, both possessing a remarkable tracheal pouch, connected by a slit with the windpipe, and only fully developed in adults.[[23]]
