A man watches the approaching flames as the Springs fire continues to grow near Camarillo, California, on May 3, 2013. The wildfire has spread to more than 18,000 acres on day two and is 20 percent contained. (Photo by David McNew)

“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)

Bystanders gives assistance after Les Republicains (LR) party candidate Nathalie Kosciusko- Morizet collapsed while campaigning in the 5th arrondissement in Paris on June 15, 2017, ahead of the second round of the French legislative election. (Photo by Geoffroy Van Der Hasselt/AFP Photo)

A person wearing a mask of Elmo walks around Times Square during the pass of the snowstorm on January 31, 2021 in New York City. New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio declared a state of emergency order due to the arriving storm that's expected to wallop New York, where airports are expected to cancel the majority if their flights. (Photo by Eduardo Munoz Alvarez/VIEWpress)

A Sri Lankan activist, who wrapped himself with fire crackers, walks in Colombo on July 23, 2014 to symbolically demonstrate against people burned during Anti-Tamil riots on the island thirty-one years ago. Official accounts placed the death toll at 400 while human rights activists put the toll at thousands. (Photo by Ishara S.Kodikara/AFP Photo)

Couples kiss during a kissing contest in Wuhan, Hubei province, November 23, 2014. Some 20 couples attended the contest and the winners have been awarded an iPhone 6, according to local media. (Photo by Reuters/Stringer)

Ke$ha performs live on stage during the second day of the Wireless Festival at Hyde Park on July 2, 2011 in London, England. (Photo by Jim Dyson/Getty Images)

Partygoers in United Kingdom flocked to bars and clubs across the nation on Friday as they drunk in the 34C scorcher. Revellers were pictured in Leeds on June 17, 2022 necking drinks and going wild as the sun set on the hottest day of the year so far. (Photo by Nb press ltd)