I spent two weeks last December in the company of a family of wild cassowaries - a rare opportunity to spend time in their company and observe their behavior. I had spent some time with them several years before, but this time I was with them every day, from the moment they arrived - usually around 8 or 9 am to when they headed for their nighttime roost in their forest in the late afternoon.

During that time their routine was fairly easy to learn. They had a daily route that took them between fruiting trees, especially those whose fruits littered the ground. Within a few days of arriving I could easily guess where they were headed by the general direction of their wandering - and could often run ahead and meet them along thge way. Other days, they suddenly plunged into the densest part of the forest where I could not hope to go - with thick tangles of spiny vines. 

One way to vary the images of these huge birds was to combine natural light with flash, which allowed me to capture a sense of motion impossible with the use of full-on flash.  This shot captures their technique for navigating the dense forest understory - lowering their head and plowing through, using their bony casque to push obstructions out of the way.

Last year, this cassowary family had chicks in late August. If they have them again this year, I hope to be there for the event.

 

Nikon D3 with Nikkor 24-70mm lens, Fill flash

Life, Color, Drama, Reality .... No Digital Manipulation