Cassowaries as they are rarely seen
Brian and Rosemary Mulcahy of Ormond Victoria researched their Daintree holiday on the web and booked onto a Cooper Creek Wilderness guided interpreted walk because they knew it would allow them to experience the real wilderness on natural trails. They did not want to go the mass tourism way of boardwalks designed to cater for high impacts and large numbers.
On Tuesday 18th July, we’d completed our two-hour rainforest tour and were strolling through the orchard discussing the proliferation of rainforest epiphytes upon our fruit trees, when we spied two adults and one sub-adult together. Seeing one cassowary is a thrill, two together is a privilege, but a pair mating with the juvenile watching is so rare that very few people are fortunate enough to see it.
I couldn’t believe that these two adults were mating in front of our group. Nor did I know that my guests were the proud owners of a brand new telescopic lens until I received their exciting images by email.
Thanks to Rosemary and Brian Mulcahy of Victoria, we can now share this amazing event with like-minded travellers who are searching for elusive natural experiences on the web.
9 MONTHS AGO ….
Dad Cassowary, a proud and protective parent, paraded his two offspring before us. Two months later, one of the chicks was lost during a territorial battle and the remaining chick has been most reluctant to leave the security of his father’s side.
Dad is sitting on the nest incubating his next family. The chick is functioning independently, and we get occasional glimpses of him in the forest.
Meanwhile the female has not been idle. She’s got herself another male.
Visitors to Cooper Creek Wilderness see this amazing forest in the company of local experts who have learned many of the secrets through long-term habitation.
The rewards of participation, beyond the awe-inspiring, yet humbling experience of the Daintree’s most magnificent rainforest, include the knowledge that payments contribute to the conservation of one of the world’s invaluable treasures.
Cooper Creek wilderness has successfully integrated residency, conservation and sustainable ecotourism to achieve a working model of World Heritage management that protects the biological diversity and ecological integrity without cost to the taxpayer.