“Cassowaries are large, flightless birds related to emus and (more distantly) to ostriches, rheas, and kiwis”, writes Olivia Judson in the September issue of National Geographic magazine. How large? People-size: Adult males stand well over five foot five and top 110 pounds. Females are even taller, and can weigh more than 160 pounds. Dangerous when roused, they’re shy and peaceable when left alone. But even birds this big and tough are prey to habitat loss. The dense New Guinea and Australia rain forests where they live have dwindled. Today cassowaries might number 1,500 to 2,000. And because they help shape those same forests – by moving seeds from one place to another – “if they vanish”, Judson writes, “the structure of the forest would gradually change” too. (Photo by Christian Ziegler/National Geographic)

Nicki Minaj attends the 14th Annual CFDA Vogue Fashion Fund Gala at Weylin on Monday, November 6, 2017, in New York. (Photo by Splash News and Pictures)

Sanne Vloet, Sui He, Lais Ribeiro, Taylor Hill, Romee Strijd and Megan Williams pose backstage during 2017 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show In Shanghai at Mercedes-Benz Arena on November 20, 2017 in Shanghai, China. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Victoria's Secret)

Danielle Sellers attends The Beauty Awards at Tower of London on November 28, 2017 in London, England. (Photo by Lia Toby/WENN)

A photo provided by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution shows Atlanta police officer T. R. Coxe removing painted material of a large swastika featuring a likeness of Republican presidential candidate, Donald Trump, along the northbound Buford Highway Connector just south of the Piedmont exit, in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, 09 December 2015. Just days after Donald Trump's call to ban Muslims from entering the United States, someone painted large swastikas featuring the Republican presidential candidate's face on at least two northeast Atlanta bridge supports. The symbol, which includes a cartoon of Trump sporting a Hitler-like mustache, was painted along the Buford Highway Connector. A second, similar image was found on a concrete bridge support on nearby Piedmont Road. Trump said in a statement released on 07 December that there should be a total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States. (Photo by John Spink/EPA/AJC)

Star Wars enthusiasts wear costumes resembling what they say are three “Chew's Angels” during the 2015 Comic-Con International Convention in San Diego, California July 10, 2015. (Photo by Mario Anzuoni/Reuters)

A girl pulls her sister in a discarded basket in the Rashidabad neighborhood of Peshawar, Pakistan October 18, 2015. (Photo by Khuram Parvez/Reuters)

A physically challenged girl looks at her brother as she is kept in a basin to seek alms from people on the street in Kano, Nigeria December 30, 2015. The girl has suffered from her condition since birth. (Photo by Reuters/Stringer)