Posts Tagged ‘Australian birds’

The Southern Cassowary

The Southern Cassowary

• The Southern Cassowary is the third tallest and second heaviest living bird, smaller only than the Ostrich and Emu.
• The name cassowary comes from two Papuan words, ‘kasu’ meaning horned and ‘weri’ meaning head, referring to the prominent casque on its head
• An adult cassowary can stand up to 1.8 metres (6’) tall.
• Cassowaries are solitary birds except during courtship, egg-laying, and sometimes around ample food supplies.
• The male cassowary is solely responsible for incubating the eggs and raising the young. They sit on the nest for 50 days until the eggs hatch.
• The father teaches the chicks how to forage and by nine months they become independent.
• There are only about 1500 cassowaries left in the wild.

We sell Cassowary plush toys in our store, these make a great gift for children or the child at heart, click here to see our cassowary products.

Photo credit: wendishness

Emu facts and trivia

Emu in the wild

• The Emu is native to Australia and it is believed to have existed almost unchanged for over 80 million years.
• Emus grow to approximately 6 feet tall and is the second largest bird in the world.
• Emu and ostrich are totally different birds.  The only similarity they share is that they are both flightless.
• The Emu is an omnivore.  In the wild its diet consists of grains and seeds and small rodents, reptiles and birds.
• Females can lay up to 60 eggs per season.  The average egg production for a hen is 30 to 40 eggs.
• The eggs are dark green and weigh 1 to 1 1/2 pounds (500 to 780 grams).
• The male Emu incubates the eggs 50 to 60 days and then raises the chicks.
• An Emu grows quickly and reaches its full height in one year.
• Emus love water and are excellent swimmers.
• Emus grow to approximately 6 feet tall.

We sell some terrific emu products in our store, from pewter figurines to plush toys – click here to check them out.

Kookaburras

Kookaburra

• Kookaburras use their laughing call to defend their territories and guard their mates.
• Their laugh is one of the most familiar sounds of the Australian bush.
• Early European settlers in Australia called them the “settlers’ clock”, because of their loud laughing choruses every morning.
• They are common around picnic areas, where they can steal food from unguarded tables – or even right off the grill.
• They can catch and kill snakes in the bush.
• In urban areas they also hunt mice and rats.
• They can live for more than 20 years and have the same mate for life.
• Young kookaburras stay with the family for several years. Family groups of more than 6 are common.
• Their greatest threat in surburbia is from the loss of trees due to development.

Check out our selection of great kookaburra plush toys, pewter figurines and pins – click here to purchase kookaburra products.

Black Swan

Black Swan

• Black swans are vegetarians eating mostly algae and weeds.
• They occasionally graze on land but are clumsy walkers.
• Like all swans they are strictly monogamous.
• Black swans grow to approximately 120cm in size, males are a little larger.
• Their weight is from 5.6 – 6.2 kg up to 9 kg.
• Their wing span reaches from 150 – 200 cm.
• They are black with a white band on the end of their wings which are visible when they fly.
• They have bright red eyes.
• Male swans are called cobs, females are pens, and young are cygnets.
• Swans in general have the largest eggs of any flighted bird.
• Swans have far more neck vertebrae than mammals, with 24 or 25 vertebrae; most mammals only have seven.