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Young Papuan Cassowary


Young Papuan Cassowary
Photo Information
Copyright: Benyamin Lakitan (blakitan) Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1081 W: 71 N: 1358] (5451)
Genre: Animals
Medium: Color
Date Taken: 2006-11-11
Categories: Birds
Exposure: f/3.5, 1/160 seconds
More Photo Info: [view]
Photo Version: Original Version
Theme(s): #4 Exotic Birds [view contributor(s)]
Date Submitted: 2006-11-15 4:47
Viewed: 808
Points: 36
[Note Guidelines] Photographer's Note
Young Papuan Cassowary (Casuarius unappendiculatus)

Cassowaries are amongst the most ancient birds on earth. They belong to the Ratite Family like the Emu, Ostrich, Rhea and Kiwi. They are fruit-eating (frugivore) animals that disperse over a hundred species of rainforest trees and vines. Therefore, this "Rainforest gardener" plays an important role in rainforest regeneration and diversity.

There are three cassowary species in the world: the Southern Cassowary in Australia, New Guinea and Ceram; the Single Wattled Cassowary (Cassowary unappendiculatus) in Northern New Guinea; and the Dwarf Cassowary (Casuarius bennetti) in Montane New Guinea. The name cassowary is of Papuan origin. It comes from 'kasu' meaning horned and 'weri' meaning head, in reference to the casqued or helmeted head.
The casque is not, as sometimes stated, horny or bony or a protuberance from the skull but a tough keratinous skin covering a core of firm, cellular foam-like material (similar in structure to Styrofoam). It is longitudinally rigid but can be squeezed at the sides. Elastic and resilient, it acts as both shock absorber and as an indicator of age and dominance. The cassowary lowers its head when running and, in that position, the casque with its backwards-sloping inclination, serves to deflect vines/vegetation away from the head. It starts to develop in young birds 18 -24 months old.
The newly hatched chicks are striped black and cream, withpale brown heads and tinywattles but no casque. All chicks look very similar and it is very hard to identify individuals. Older chicks maintain their stripes until they are 5 months of age; the stripes then fade and by the first year the chicks are a dull brown. The skin around their necks begins to colour at about six to nine months.

Source: www.cassowaryconservation.asn.au
Hay_kes, Alex99, ramthakur, SkyF, captainsgirl, scottevers7, claudine, pablominto, izler, XOTAELE, roconnell has marked this note useful
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Critiques [Translate]

hello
quel air triste il a cet oiseau, il te regarde su coin de l'oeil!!!
il a toutefois de tres bons détails dans le plumage
merci du partage
edith

Hi Benyamin..
Like the sharpness displayed here..
TFS
Annick

hi benyamin,
lovely shot,
well composed, nice pov, good dof,
the bg is good, framed well, colours look natural,
well done,
tfs & regards
pankaj

Hi Ben,
Very nice capture.Sharp, colours, BG, POV and frame are excellent.Well done.TFS.

hAyAti

  • Great 
  • Alex99 Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 3160 W: 148 N: 4787] (15449)
  • [2006-11-15 9:39]

Hi Ben.
Your next very nice bird portrait. Touching pose of the bird and its eye's expression (you have reflected perfectly). Excellent cropping, nice true colours and wonderful BG. As usual I like very good details and sharpness. My compliments and TFS.
Alexei.

A portrait that catches the eye, Benyamin, for extremely sharp and life-like details and colours. I can even see the eyebrows of the bird!
Your note throws useful light on the species restricted to only a few zones in the world.
Thanks and take care.
Ram

belle photo,belle couleurs,bien net quoi de plus . Thomas

  • Great 
  • SkyF Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 2390 W: 194 N: 1991] (8113)
  • [2006-11-15 12:35]

Hi Ben,
wonderful capture even though this bird looks melanchonic. POV, colors and the sharpness are excellent. A lovely porttrait with very nice details.
Sky

good details.

hi mario

  • Great 
  • arfer Gold Star Critiquer [C: 2731 W: 0 N: 0] (0)
  • [2006-11-15 20:00]

Hello Benyamin

A beautiful portrait of this Cassowary.The POV and DOF are very good.The details are really sharp and crisp.The colours are well saturated.Nicely framed and presented.TFS

Rob

great close up shot, nice POV , great color and sharpness. TFS
Donna :o)

Hi Ben,
This is great. Another new species for me! Great portrait shot here. Spot on with the colors and detail. Very unique looking bird. Great supporting and informative notes.
Scott

Hello Ben,
This is a great portrait of a bird that I don't know much about. I like this proximity you had and those great details you caught in a very good composition. This is a really strange bird in my perception :) Thanks for those useful notes.
Claudine

Hello Ben,
A lovely portrait of this interesting bird!
I cannon help feeling he looks a bit sad...
The close-up work is very well done, with superb details in the feather coat and also good natural colours!
A well composed presentation...
Greetings,
Pablo

  • Great 
  • izler Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Star Workshop Editor/Gold Note Writer [C: 1325 W: 79 N: 916] (8534)
  • [2006-11-19 8:12]

hello benyamin
interesting bird subtype for me and cute portrait photo. i have never seen like this. point of view, depth of field, colours, sharpness, details and note are great
TFS
regards
izler

Extraño pájaro. Bellos detalles y la nitidez es extraordinaria. Buen trabajo Benyamin.
Un fuerte abrazo, JL.

Marvelous detail and great DOF. The lashes above the eye are especially nice to see up close. Well done.

  • Great 
  • Adam73 Gold Star Critiquer/Gold Note Writer [C: 226 W: 5 N: 536] (2245)
  • [2006-11-29 11:56]

I have never seen one of these. Your color saturation is perfect. Exposure is spot on and I like the background blur. The sharpness and details are great and the pose of the bird is very nice.

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