Beachgoer videos endangered cassowary emerging from ocean

November 13, 2023 7:49 PM

Amazed beachgoer videos endangered cassowary emerging from ocean off Far North Queensland [text article with embedded video]. "From a distance it resembled a mythic monster but as it came closer in the tropical Queensland waters a stunned onlooker realised the struggling creature was a large bird — and not a seabird." Both cassowaries and emus are well known to enjoy a dip in shallow water (where their feet still touch the bottom) in hot weather, but it is very unusual to see them swimming in deep water.
posted by chariot pulled by cassowaries (25 comments total)

More like cassounwary right folks?
posted by abucci at 8:00 PM on November 13, 2023 [4 favorites]

There was no report of any chariot, but perhaps that is merely a childhood fable attached to these magnificent birds.
posted by hippybear at 8:11 PM on November 13, 2023 [16 favorites]

i love that they took one look at it and were like “prolly was running from a dog”. anyway i’m glad we’re getting cassowary content from the cassowary chariot account
posted by dis_integration at 8:28 PM on November 13, 2023 [8 favorites]

I expect it was frightened into the ocean by a human or a dog, unfortunately. These birds are indeed awesome, but rightly fearful of humans. Every time I see a picture of one, it reminds me of the first time we travelled to Cape Tribulation. It was just at the start of the first COVID lockdown and we were one of the last people to leave. There was so little traffic and so few people around that the Cassowaries emerged from the rainforest in huge numbers and you could see them all over the place from the road. We were able to stop our car in the middle of the road and watch them wandering around with their babies without a care in the world. It was as if they knew the people wouldn't be back for a while.

They were much more elusive when we went back last year and it was almost a different place. We only saw one Cassowary and that was only because it darted out of the bush in front of our car as we were crossing Emagen Creek.
posted by dg at 8:30 PM on November 13, 2023 [8 favorites]

Can someone clarify if "endangered" is operating as a past-tense verb or an adjective here?

Did the videos of the beachgoer *cause danger* to the cassowary, or did the beachgoer record on video a cassowary *which is endangered*? Or is it both?
posted by The Pluto Gangsta at 8:39 PM on November 13, 2023 [6 favorites]

Can someone clarify if "endangered" is operating as a past-tense verb or an adjective here? Did the videos of the beachgoer *cause danger* to the cassowary, or did the beachgoer record on video a cassowary *which is endangered*? Or is it both?

The Pluto Gangsta, it refers to their conservation status - the number of cassowaries in the wild, and their risk of going extinct.

The Australian population of cassowaries is listed as Endangered under federal and Queensland state legislation.
posted by chariot pulled by cassowaries at 8:45 PM on November 13, 2023 [5 favorites]

Oh good, I was concerned some bumbling tourist who's a wannabe-wildlife-photographer had screwed with the habitat of a rare bird, or something.
posted by The Pluto Gangsta at 8:54 PM on November 13, 2023 [7 favorites]

The cassowary,
he came out of the sea.
He ate all the others,
but he didn't eat me.
posted by Phobos the Space Potato at 10:11 PM on November 13, 2023 [8 favorites]

I wonder how many sharks it had just eaten?
posted by waving at 3:00 AM on November 14, 2023 [3 favorites]

Was it wearing a flimsy plastic bib with a shark on it?
posted by PlusDistance at 4:10 AM on November 14, 2023 [1 favorite]

I we sure this wasn’t Venus in Cassowary form, emerging from the foam? Best worship her, just to be safe.
posted by GenjiandProust at 5:12 AM on November 14, 2023 [5 favorites]

I know they're not anything like cassowarys except in the most superficial ways, but this week we've been waking up to find anywhere from six to fifteen wild turkeys strutting around like velociraptors. It's occasionally enough to get my lizard brain's attention.
posted by RonButNotStupid at 5:35 AM on November 14, 2023 [4 favorites]

Someone should give it a pedal boat. With legs like that, I bet it could do laps around Australia.
posted by pracowity at 7:06 AM on November 14, 2023 [1 favorite]

I, too, was glad to see that the beachgoer videos weren't endangering the cassowary.
posted by umber vowel at 7:55 AM on November 14, 2023 [1 favorite]

pedal boats pushed by cassowaries
posted by y2karl at 7:58 AM on November 14, 2023 [3 favorites]

My friend and I were absolutely obsessed with ratites in high school. Emus, cassowaries and rheas. To the point where we'd go out of our way to visit emu farms during the emu boom of the late 90s. What we knew of cassowaries at the time was that they had "bony helmets" which they used to "butt through underbrush."

I'm sad that they're endangered - they are big, beautiful creatures and I hope conservation attempts keep them from going extinct.
posted by grumpybear69 at 8:03 AM on November 14, 2023

My word. What a beautiful animal.
posted by obfuscation at 9:23 AM on November 14, 2023

Just don't get in its face to tell it so.

Those feet will fuck you up.
posted by flabdablet at 11:23 AM on November 14, 2023 [1 favorite]

It seems pretty chill.
posted by amanda at 12:02 PM on November 14, 2023 [1 favorite]

Actually, the water wasn't that chill, fairly warm actually.
But that is one tired puppy burb. Big Burb wants to squat and relax instead of kicking you to death today.
posted by BlueHorse at 3:47 PM on November 14, 2023 [1 favorite]

MetaFilter: squat and relax vs kicking you to death
posted by hippybear at 3:54 PM on November 14, 2023 [2 favorites]

Can't get the video to work on any browser on my computer, is there an alternative source to watch it?
posted by GiantSlug at 5:48 PM on November 14, 2023

Is this the final boss on the birder life list?
posted by srboisvert at 5:49 PM on November 14, 2023

GiantSlug: is there an alternative source to watch it?
YThere is. Or Storyful.
posted by BobTheScientist at 7:29 PM on November 14, 2023 [1 favorite]

I, too, was glad to see that the beachgoer videos weren't endangering the cassowary.
posted by umber vowe

I'm happy we agree but this just raises more questions.

How, exactly, did these videos emerge from the ocean? I mean, did someone put some footage hypnotic only to Kasuars *) on a water proof touchpad strapped to some floatation device and/or explosives and release those possibly by using scuba gear?

*) I'm sorry but I really dig the local name. Maybe I shouldn't. I'm sorry.
posted by flamewise at 9:48 AM on November 15, 2023