Not everyone possesses the courage and composure to document a moment when being chased by the world’s most dangerous bird, as demonstrated by the man in the video below.
Cameron Wilson, a wildlife ranger working at Wuthathi National Park in Queensland, Australia, felt as though something was watching and pursuing him while he was driving to patrol his designated area.
When he turned around to look, Wilson was startled to see an angry cassowary charging toward him at full speed. He immediately accelerated his vehicle to escape but accidentally crashed into a bank, causing him to be thrown from the car.
What does it feel like to be chased by the world’s most dangerous bird? (Video: Cameron Wilson).
Fortunately, at that moment, Clayton Enoch, a colleague of Wilson’s, arrived just in time.
“Cameron waved at me to slow down, and I wondered what was happening. When he pointed to the cassowary charging from behind, I was startled,” Clayton Enoch recounted the incident.
After stopping to pick up Wilson, Enoch tried to maneuver the vehicle away from the enraged bird, but the speed of the animal allowed it to closely follow the vehicle.
As Enoch drove to escape, Wilson didn’t forget to use his smartphone to capture the moment they were being pursued by the world’s most terrifying bird.
“It was right behind our car making threatening sounds. I got hit by a branch while fleeing but forgot all about the pain,” Clayton Enoch shared. “We kept thinking about what would happen if the bird caught up, praying there wouldn’t be any logs or rocks to blow out a tire.”
“It was like a scene from the movie ‘Jurassic Park,’ where the characters are chased by dinosaurs,” Enoch humorously added.
Fortunately, after a long chase, the cassowary fell behind and stopped its pursuit. As for Wilson, he ended up with an exciting video of the moment he was chased by the world’s most dangerous bird.
The sharp claws of the cassowary are likened to dinosaur feet. (Photo: Getty).
The cassowary is one of the largest bird species in the world. This bird is native to Oceania, living in Australia, New Guinea, and some nearby islands. Its primary diet consists of fruits, insects, and small animals.
Adult cassowaries stand between 1.2 meters and 1.5 meters tall and weigh around 60 kilograms; they have wings but cannot fly, only running, reaching speeds of up to 50 km/h. When running, they lift their two wings for balance. Not only can they run fast, but cassowaries are also excellent swimmers.
Cassowaries are highly territorial birds. They do not attack unless they perceive their territory is being invaded or their eggs and young are threatened. This bird possesses sharp claws, measuring up to 12 cm in length. This claw, combined with their strong kicking force, allows cassowaries to defend themselves from dangerous predators. A cassowary’s kick can be lethal to an adult human.
As of 2019, the scientific journal Smithsonian reported over 150 incidents of cassowaries attacking humans, resulting in at least one fatality. In 2007, the Guinness World Records awarded the cassowary the title of “the world’s most dangerous bird.”
