Murray Falls: Cassowary warning issued for North Queensland national park

The feeding of cassowaries at a popular North Queensland camping spot is putting people “at risk of serious and potentially fatal injuries”.

The feeding of cassowaries at a popular North Queensland camping spot is putting people “at risk of serious and potentially fatal injuries”.

The Department of Environment, Science and Innovation (DESI) warned on Tuesday that the potentially deadly cassowaries at Murray Falls north-west of Cardwell were not afraid of human contact and were approaching visitors for food.

Senior Wildlife Officer Alex Diczbalis said tourists visiting Wet Tropics national parks in the hope of seeing a cassowary in the wild were now finding “themselves getting a much closer and potentially dangerous encounter than they were expecting.”

“The cassowaries at Murray Falls have become habituated to receiving food from humans and have begun to enter camps and actively take food from plates or the hands of campers,” he said.

“This is learned behaviour because people have deliberately or inadvertently fed the birds, and now the cassowaries are stalking the camping area expecting to receive a feed.”

A wild and potentially deadly cassowary approaches campers at Murray Falls in the Girramay National Park in North Queensland. Picture: Supplied

Mr Diczbalis said allowing cassowaries to associate humans with food at Murray Falls camping area was “dangerous to both campers and the birds”.

“It puts campers at risk of serious and potentially fatal injuries, as cassowaries are large birds with dagger like talons on their feet, and they may get aggressive if they can’t access food or feel threatened.”

A wild and potentially deadly cassowary approaches campers at Murray Falls in the Girramay National Park in North Queensland. Picture: Supplied

He urged campers to ensure all food, scraps and rubbish were off-limits to the giant birds.

“Extra vigilance is required around mealtimes, which could include eating inside tents, caravans or vehicles.”

Mr Diczbalis said Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service rangers and wildlife officers had been visiting the camping area in the Girramay National Park to educate campers about cassowary behaviour.

“Wildlife officers are also using specialised behavioural modification techniques to change the cassowary’s association between camp sites and food,” he said.

“This is encouraging the cassowaries to stop hanging around the camping area and to return to the rainforest and their natural foraging behaviour.”

A Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service wildlife officer from Department of Environment, Science and Innovation (DESI) at Murray Falls in the Girramay National Park in North Queensland. Picture: Supplied

The wildlife officer said the issue extended across the Wet Tropics, particularly around Etty Bay and Mission Beach.

“People need to stop giving cassowaries access to food to ensure they remain in the rainforest where they can continue their important role of native seed dispersal.”

He said the maximum penalty for anyone caught deliberately feeding a cassowary was $6452.

DESI is warning people in the Wet Tropics to “Be cass-O-wary” at all times:

• Never approach cassowaries

• Never approach chicks – male cassowaries will defend them

• Never feed cassowaries – it is illegal, dangerous and has caused cassowary deaths

• Always discard food scraps in closed bins and ensure compost bins have secure lids

• Slow down when driving in cassowary habitat

• Never stop your vehicle to look at cassowaries on the road

• Keep dogs behind fences or on a leash

Quick Cassowary facts:

• Cassowaries evolved around 60 million years ago and share some characteristics with dinosaurs, including their three-taloned feet and respiratory system

• It is the largest native vertebrate in Australian rainforests

• It is the second heaviest bird in the world to the ostrich and third tallest bird in the world to the ostrich (#1) and the emu (#2)

• The cassowary egg is the third largest of all birds at about 584g

• Their diet consists primarily of fruit, some of which contain seeds that are poisonous to other animals

• They are listed as endangered, with an estimated 4,400 cassowaries left in the wild

Originally published as Murray Falls: Cassowary warning issued for North Queensland national park