“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)

Disguised revellers parade on the occasion of the Cortege during the Carnival in Basel, Switzerland, February 17, 2016. (Photo by Georgios Kefalas/EPA)

American singer-songwriter Chlöe Bailey in the second decade of July 2023 enjoys her first Carnival in a barely there costume. (Photo by chloebailey/Instagram)

Young siblings in costume fully embrace the Notting Hill carnival atmosphere in London, England on August 28, 2023. (Photo by Nico Froehlich/The Guardian)

A curious cat ipeeks out of a bag carried by its owner on a tour of the Cat Expo 2022 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, 30 September 2022. The “Ekspo Kucing”, described as Malaysia's Largest Cat Expo runs from 30 September to 02 October 2022 at the Matrade Exhibition and Convention Centre (MECC) in Kuala Lumpur and “will also feature other variety of pets such as rabbits, hamsters, guinea pigs, reptiles and exotic animals”, the MECC said on its website, along with other highlight events such as a Federation Internationale Feline (FIFe) Cat Competition, Cat Adoptions or a “Sugar Glinder Contest”. (Photo by Fazry Ismail/EPA/EFE/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

Ketula Melo from the Imperatriz Leopoldinense samba school performs during Carnival celebrations at the Sambadrome in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Friday, April 22, 2022. (AP Photo/Bruna Prado)

Dogs pose for a photo in the likeness of a photo time line of Face Book during the “Blocao” dog carnival parade in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Saturday, February 14, 2015. (Photo by Silvia Izquierdo/AP Photo)

A participant poses backstage before a drag queen competition during carnival festivities in Las Palmas on the Spanish Canary Island of Gran Canaria February 20, 2015. (Photo by Borja Suarez/Reuters)