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Not every day one can say that an animal’s leg has become conversations on the Internet. But this is exactly what happened in January 2019. A tweet (see below) of the graduate student captured a striking photo of a cassowary’s foot.
How big is this foot and how lethal is it? Let’s dive into the details below!
At the feet of the cassowary, there are three toes with claws at the end (more on this later). The feet are at the base of long legs, which in some cassowary species reach almost six feet in height.
It is important to note that cassowaries No predators. Rather, they eat a diet rich in fruits and only occasionally eat insects, snails, and small mammals. So, when you see the claws of a cassowary, they are designed for protection.
Cassowaries can run at speeds up to 31 mph (50 km) and jump seven feet into the air from a standstill, which should give you an idea of just how strong their legs are!
These giant birds are also not afraid to use their claws and are called “unpredictable”. When faced with a problem, cassowaries will scratch and kick potential threats, resulting in many casualties.
Cassowary claw: long and dagger-like
As noted above, the cassowary has three toes, each with a claw at the end. The two toes have relatively short claws about an inch in size. The third claw on the inside of the foot is that Indeed attracts attention as it reaches five inches in length.
If the cassowary claw vaguely reminds you of something from Jurassic Park, there is a good reason for that! Relatives of the cassowary arose shortly after the extinction of the dinosaurs, and birds remain some of the closest living relatives of the dinosaurs.
How dangerous is the cassowary claw?
Over the past 100 years, there have been two casualties with cassowaries. The first took place in Australia in 1926. Two teenagers attacked the cassowary, as a result of which one was wounded in the neck by the claw of the cassowary. The second, more recent incident occurred in Florida in 2019. The man who was holding the cassowary on his farm fell to the ground and the cassowary stabbed him to death with its claws.
Considering these fatalities, cassowaries are truly “the most dangerous bird in the world” because Guinness Book of Records called them? In fact, cassowaries live in remote areas where they rarely meet people. In addition, a 2006 study found that 75% of cassowary attacks were due to humans being fed.
Cassowaries prefer to attack first, and any vision of giant birds flying with claws five feet in the air is pure fiction. 71% of incidents with cassowaries saw them attacking or pushing.
So, although the claws of the cassowary seem impressive to me, the animal still prefers to attack first and then kick.
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