A team of ten acrobats form the shape of a racehorse crossing the winning post ridden by Stefanie Hofer to celebrate the upcoming Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup at Ascot Racecourse on July 29, 2014 in Ascot, England. The Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup is the only team-format raceday in the UK and takes place on 9th August. (Photo by Ian Gavan/Getty Images for Ascot Racecourse)

“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)

Hope Solo of the USA looks dejected after losing 3-5 after penalty shoot-out the FIFA Women's World Cup Final match between Japan and USA at the FIFA World Cup stadium Frankfurt on July 17, 2011 in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. (Photo by Christof Koepsel/Getty Images)

Russia's Maria Stavitskaia performs during the ladies short program at the Rostelecom Cup ISU Grand Prix of Figure Skating in Moscow November 14, 2014. (Photo by Grigory Dukor/Reuters)

Belgium supporters pose before the World Cup quarterfinal soccer match between Argentina and Belgium at the Estadio Nacional in Brasilia, Brazil, Saturday, July 5, 2014. (Photo by Victor R. Caivano/AP Photo)

American actress Paris Jackson pulls faces at photographers during the “Melbourne Cup” race day festivities in Melbourne, Australia on November 7, 2017. (Photo by Media-Mode/Splash News and Pictures)

A fan of Colombia cheers prior to a qualifying soccer match between for the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 Colombia and Chile in Barranquilla, Colombia, Friday, September 10, 2021. (Photo by Fernando Vergara/AP Photo)

The Patrouille Suisse jets perform prior to the Men's Downhill race at the Fis Alpine Skiing World Cup in Wengen, Switzerland, 15 January 2022. (Photo by Jean-Christophe Bott/EPA/EFE)