How ferocious can a bird be in your mind?
In the animal kingdom, there is such a "savage bird", which is known as the "killing bird" in New Guinea, a random kick can penetrate a few millimeters of steel plates, and even a strong horse is a matter of minutes, and it can make people open their stomachs with one blow.
It is known as the crane ostrich of the contemporary velociraptor and is the most dangerous bird in the world.
Crane ostrich with "helmet"
Crane ostriches live mainly in the deep forests of some islands in Australia, New Guinea and Papua New Guinea. It is the third largest bird in the world, after the ostrich and emus.
The crane ostrich looks very much like an ostrich, with a long neck, a small head, degenerated wings, long legs and large claws. The ostrich has 2 toes, the crane ostrich has 3, and one toe has been specialized into a dagger, which can grow up to 12 cm long.
Although the crane ostrich can't fly, it is good at running, can reach speeds of up to 50 kilometers per hour, and Bolt is not its opponent.
It has no feathers on the top of its head and neck, the skin of its head is blue-purple, and the neck is hung with two bright red meat pendants, which the local natives believe that this is caused by the flames of the crane ostrich, so they also call it "cassowarman".
It has a semi-fan-shaped brown helmet on the top of its head, like its crown, which can not only pull out branches while running, but also act as a signal receiver, able to receive ultra-low frequency infrasound waves that are imperceptible to human hearing.
An ostrich with amazing lethality
Crane ostriches are aggressive and do not want to catch prey, as they feed mainly on a variety of seeds and berries. They are grumpy because they have a strong sense of territory and will attack whenever they find a creature approaching.
With their dagger-like claws and strong leg muscles, cranes and ostriches can hook human internal organs with a single blow, while dogs and horses can be deadly with just one blow.
The enraged crane ostrich will raise its legs and strike at the enemy violently, and with its bouncing ability, it can easily hit the position above the human neck.
Since the 1980s, 20 people have been attacked by crane ostriches in New Guinea alone, six of whom have died. Australia has recorded 150 attacks, 7 of which were seriously injured.
The main reason why the crane ostrich, which originally lived deep in the forest, clashed with people was mainly because the forest was widely cut down, they lost food and habitat, and had to invade the human range.
The current situation of the crane ostrich
According to statistics, there are only 1500-10000 cranes and ostriches in the world today, and the number is still declining every year.
Due to the long mating cycle of crane ostriches and the difficulty of mating in the opposition, the number is not much. Coupled with the large reduction of their habitat due to human activities, cranes and ostriches have to enter the range of human activities many times, and contradictions arise.
Once the aborigines of Australia thought that the appearance of the crane ostrich was very frightening, the color was strange, the temperament was fierce, it must be the embodiment of the devil, so they took pride in hunting the crane ostrich.
The solitary crane ostrich has sharp claws and cannot fight the social humans who can use tools, so many cranes and ostriches are killed.
In the 18th century, the crane ostrich was favored by European noblewomen because of its sapphire-like feather color, so it attracted the killing queen.
In addition, they will encounter attacks by dingoes, cat mutilation of pups brought by humans, and avian influenza disease caused by human-raised poultry. As a result, in the past 30 years, according to statistics, the number of crane ostriches has dropped by 30%.
After the 20th century, human beings gradually increased their awareness of protecting ecology and wildlife, and the IUCN listed cranes and ostriches as "first-class endangered wild animals".
Many zoologists and zoos also began to breed crane ostriches in captivity, and the decline in crane ostrich populations was alleviated.