Geographically, the Australian continent has been separated by oceans for the past tens of millions of years, far from Asia and other continents. As a result, New Zealand is not infested by carnivores from other continents, an isolated continent that was once a bird's paradise, with more than 45 per cent bird population.
Because of the abundant resources and comfortable life, many birds are mostly lazy, such as kiwi birds, owl parrots, etc., but there are also some birds, because they have existed since the time of dinosaurs, they have practiced some unique skills. The most typical is the crane ostrich.
<h1 class= "pgc-h-arrow-right" > crane ostrich, representative of the remaining birds of the dinosaur era</h1>
The crane ostrich is a bird of the family Crane Ostrich, and the three surviving crane ostriches are the Double Weeping Crane Ostrich (Casuarius Casuarius) and the Single-Hanging Crane Ostrich (C. C. unappendiculatus) and C. pygmy crane ostrich (C. bennetti）。 "Single-hanging" and "double-hanging" refer to the number of fleshy sagging of the neck of the two types of crane ostriches, respectively.
The ostrich's wings have degenerated, and the sternum lacks a protruding keel process, so that the pectoralis major muscle lacks sufficient attachment surface, so they are unable to fly.
However, as compensation for the inability to fly, the crane ostrich is very large, the largest double-weeping crane ostrich can grow to 1.5 to 1.8 meters tall, the female can grow to 2 meters, the average weight is nearly 60 kg, the data is similar to an adult (the male is smaller than the female), is the second heaviest bird in existence.
In addition, the crane ostrich runs very fast, can have 50 kilometers per hour, has a strong jumping ability, jumps up to 1.5 meters, and is more skilled in swimming than crossing small rivers.
The crane ostrich is one of the closest birds to the age of the dinosaurs, and the crown on their heads is similar to that of the prehistoric creature Crown Thief (a species of Oviraptorosaurus). Scientists don't yet know what their crowns are for, but what they do know is that they can and use them to tear down small trees and jungles.
In addition, another very "dinosaur" place on the crane ostrich is that its forelimbs have claws and are very long. However, due to its thick and fluffy long hair and its small short hands like the Tyrannosaurus Rex, the crane ostrich usually looked as if it had only two legs.
The ostrich's unique skill is that it has 3 toes on its feet and its claws can be up to 12 cm long. Strong legs can help the crane ostrich still travel at speeds of 50 kilometers per hour as it passes through dense forest bushes, and with strong leg muscles, the crane ostrich can hook out the human internal organs with a single blow, while dogs and horses can be fatal with a single blow.
Crane ostriches can kick forward and backward, in addition to pecking or direct impact with their mouths. The most common injuries they cause in humans are stabbing wounds, lacerations and fractures. If a person crouches, lies down, or falls to the ground, they are most likely to cause serious injury. So when facing a crane ostrich, it is obviously unwise to crouch or turn your back on the bird.
However, the crane ostrich attacks humans, not because they want to "eat people", they mainly feed on various seeds and berries (vegetarians), and can eat 10 pounds of fruit a day. Although they also eat fungi, snails, insects, frogs, snakes and other small animals.
They have such a strong ability to attack, as solitary birds, they have a strong sense of territory, they attack humans, but also because humans have invaded their territory.
Crane ostrich is the world's most dangerous bird to humans, today we will take a look at the first case of crane ostrich murder.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" > Crane Ostrich Murder First Case: Anyone who had an idea about me was kicked to death by me</h1>
In fact, before it was recorded, there was a fierce conflict between the crane ostrich and the Australian Aborigines, because the crane ostriches had gorgeous feathers, and their feathers were used to decorate the headdresses and nose ornaments of the Aborigines. Aboriginal Australians generally hunt crane ostriches during the juvenile period, and then when the birds reach adulthood, they are killed. Many Indigenous Australians have died as a result of the attacks of crane ostriches.
The first recorded case of crane ostrich murder occurred in 1926, in Australia, where sixteen-year-old Phillip McClean and his 13-year-old brother met a crane ostrich that they wanted to kill, but the younger brother was beaten away and his brother was cut off the neck. A 1.25 cm (0.5 in) wound was opened, and this happened to cut his jugular vein.
After this, crane ostrich wounds and killings often occurred, and during World War II, when American and Australian troops were stationed in New Guinea, the commanders solemnly warned the local garrison to stay away from the crane ostrich. Because they are dangerous, they attack quickly, accurately, and can kill with one kick. However, there are still many soldiers who do not listen to orders out of curiosity, frequently harass them, and the cassowaries who are forced into a desperate situation are naturally not easy to provoke, and they fight back angrily. Some soldiers were killed or seriously injured as a result.
Scientists counted 150 cases of crane ostrich injuries and found that 70% of them are related to human feeding behavior: crane ostriches that have been fed by humans will approach humans because of hunger, which greatly increases the possibility of conflict, in addition, because of a strong sense of territory, in order to protect young cubs, fear of human invasion of territory, they will also launch attacks on humans.
<h1 class= "pgc-h-arrow-right" > the survival crisis of the crane ostrich</h1>
The biggest threat to the crane ostrich is habitat destruction and loss. Although these big birds are amazingly effective, they will still be crushed to death by cars in the face of cars, and their populations are disturbed by wild boars and dogs, so they do not have a good feeling for dogs, and even take the initiative to attack dogs, in the 35 recorded incidents of conflict with dogs, 22 seriously injured dogs; 29 cases belonged to the self-defense behavior of cranes and ostriches, and 6 cases actively attacked dogs.
But no matter how hard the crane ostrich tries, it is still useless in front of humans, and because of its size and ferocity, they are recognized as difficult to breed in international zoos. Over the past 30 years (as of 2018), the number of crane ostriches has declined by 30%, and according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), only about 1,500 are currently endangered.
Many say the ostrich is a killer bird, and they have been listed by the Guinness Book of World Records as "the most dangerous bird in the world" more than a decade ago. Most of the attacks of crane ostriches on humans are not aimed at aggression or harm, they just want to survive better. To sum up its character in one sentence: people do not offend me, I do not offend!