canberrabirds

Egret Antics

To: "'Robin Hide'" <>, "'Canberra Birds'" <>
Subject: Egret Antics
From: "Philip Veerman" <>
Date: Sun, 17 Oct 2010 16:49:01 +1100
Hard to see any connection between the behaviour of egrets and cassowaries but it is a very odd thing about the cassowary and a new one on me. If these two reports are independent, there is little option but to believe them. Nothing mentioned in HANZAB about the cassowary that appears even close to this.
 
Philip
 
-----Original Message-----
From: Robin Hide [
Sent: Sunday, 17 October 2010 2:15 PM
To: Canberra Birds
Cc: Peter Ormay; Lindsay Hansch; Paul Fennell
Subject: Re: [canberrabirds] Egret Antics

I wonder if this has any bearing (a long shot?) on the fairly frequently reported accounts (mainly in ethno-ornithology, but some apparently by western observers) of "fishing" behaviour by cassowaries in New Guinea?

For instance:

During the Crane Pacific Expedition in 1928-29, the expedition boat Illyria visited the Sepik to make natural history collections.  According to the expedition’s historian, Sidney Shurcliff (1930: 226), the Head of the expedition’s scientific staff, Karl Patterson Schmidt, told other team members:

 “...a rather delightful story about the cassowary which he says is well known in the world of science*, although it has never been proven.  According to the story, the cassowary fishes by going into the water up to his neck and fluffing out his hair-like feathers.  Small fish, mistaking the feathers of the bird for a mass of water vegetation, soon take refuge in them.  The cassowary, after waiting patiently in the water for a half hour or so, makes a sudden rush for the shore and shaking himself thoroughly proceeds to devour the fish thrown onto the ground.”

A very similar account by the French anthropologist, Monique Jeudy-Ballini, from East New Britain.

 “The Sulka also attribute this bird with the peculiarity of using its body as a water trap.  Its cunning consists in squatting in water holes with its wings outspread so that little fish or crustaceans will enter the feathers to feed on parasites.  They are rewarded for their greediness by being eaten in turn when the cassowary, hopping out of the water, shakes itself and gobbles them up as they fall to the ground.” (Jeudy-Ballini, 2002: 203).


References:

Jeudy-Ballini, M. (2002). "To Help and To "Hold": Forms of Cooperation Among the Sulka, New Britain". In: M. Jeudy-Ballini and B. Juillerat, Eds. People and Things: Social Mediations in Oceania. Durham, N.C., Carolina Academic Press, pp. 185-209.

 

Shurcliff, S. N. (1930). Jungle Islands: The "Illyria" in the South Seas. New York, G.P. Putnam's Sons.


see also:
Gardner, D. S. (1984). “A note on the androgynous qualities of the cassowary: or why the Mianmin say it is not a bird.” Oceania 55(2): 137-145


*I assume Shurcliff had recently read:  Gudger, E.W. (1927). "How the Cassowary (Casuarius bennettii) Goes A-fishing." Natural History, 27(5), 485-48.



Robin Hide




On 17/10/2010 1:47 PM, Peter Ormay wrote:
Thank you Lindsey and Paul
I saw that hunting technique on a wildlife documentary years ago but missed what species employed it and where it lived. It's a cunning method.
 
What species did you observe using the technique in Australia Paul?
Cheers
Peter
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