Youmight think the first bird species that humans raised in captivity would be arelatively small one, like a chicken.
Butevidence suggests that people in New Guinea reared the cassowary, often calledthe world’s deadliest bird, as much as 18,000 years ago, long before thedomestication of chickens.
Theremains of cassowary eggs and bones at archaeological sites in New Guineaindicate that people gathered the eggs, possibly allowing the more mature eggsto hatch into chicks.
Allcassowaries possess fearsome sharp toes that have been known to kill orseriously injure humans. While Northern and Southern Cassowaries can reachheights of five feet or more, the Dwarf Cassowary stands just three and a halffeet tall.
Researcherssuspect that by collecting nearly-hatched cassowary eggs, probably from theDwarf Cassowary, people could have easily reared their chicks. Today in NewGuinea, captive cassowary chicks become imprinted on their human carers,allowing people to raise them to adulthood.
Cassowariesmay not be the cuddliest of birds. But people found a clever way to live besidethem long ago.
