Spirit Guide of the day is Cassowary! Refresh yourself with some time away from civilization, increasing the amount of fresh fruit in your diet for a while. Now is a time to give back to those around you whether this is your time, gifts, money, recycled goods, or giving to local organizations or events that may have helped you previously. Karma is important to remember in this time for anything you do right now will return in strength and speed. Hold yourself with dignity, honesty, and self-respect. Cassowary reminds us to have an open mind and to accept that others may have differing viewpoints or opinions than ourselves. As we go through life, we learn lessons. Cassowary aids us in teaching how we may glean information from each lesson to build ourselves into a more knowledgeable self. We are all individuals and learn our lessons in our own way. Cassowary reminds us to remember and have patience for the differences in the way we each learn. Take your time learning so that you can fully take in the knowledge being taught to you. When necessary, draw from the environment around you as well as your personal physical strength to defend yourself. If there is an obstacle in your way, use the bits of information learned from your lessons to know that you possess the strength not only to overcome your obstacles, but to push through them powerfully. Cassowary is a guide known to give you that extra push of strength. Although sounding harsh, this guide often prefers to destroy obstacles rather than work around them. Face your fears, face your obstacles, and know you have the strength within to overcome them. Cassowary is a sign to bring balance to your masculine and feminine sides, reminding us that each exists within the other. People who connect with Cassowary enjoy their solitude, but don't mind when others visit. These territorial individuals carry themselves with a relaxed authority, but can become strongly forceful and belligerent if someone uninvited attempts to intrude on their territory. Any men connected with Cassowary show great attention and participation in their children's life through conception to adulthood. These types often have to remember to open their minds to other viewpoints and not become so rigid that they can not learn. Release your defensiveness and remember you do not lose anything by opening your mind.

The Cassowary, a large flightless bird native to Northern Australia, New Guinea, and the surrounding islands, have three various subspecies. The Southern or Double-wattled Cassowary, Casuarius, the Northern or Single-wattled Cassowary, Unappendiculatus, and the Dwarf Cassowary, Bennetti. Related to the Emu and the Ostrich, they are the heaviest bird in Australia and the second heaviest in the world after the Ostrich. The name Cassowary may be Papuan in origin, "Kasu" meaning horned and "weri" meaning head. The largest Cassowary, the Southern Cassowary, lives in New Guinea in lowland rain forests, being less common in northern Australia. The crest on the Southern's head that is seen in all Cassowary, called a Casque, is blade-like and brownish while it's head, neck, and throat are featherless which shows its bright blue skin. The smaller, Northern Cassowary is the most recently discovered of the three species and the most threatened. This species is found only along the rivers, banks, or coastal swampy lowlands of New Guinea. The throat skin and wattle of the Northern are either red or golden depending on where it lives with a larger and more flared casque. The smallest of the three species, the Dwarf Cassowary is the only one of the three that does not possess wattles. Instead, they have a round, purple spot where the wattle would be and bright pink spots on it's cheeks, being the most colorful of the Cassowary. It's casque is black, triangular in shape, and flattened at the back. The Dwarf Cassowary has black face and heads, with deep blue necks, and red or violet shoulders. These Cassowary are found in the higher elevations of New Guinea and is commonly ground in New Guinea, but rarely found in zoos. In the wild, they can live up to 19 years and up to 40 years when in captivity. These birds are covered in dense, two-quilled black feathers that are adapted not for flight, but to protect them in their natural tropical habitats. These feathers keep them dry and safe from sharp thorns found throughout the rain forest. Their tiny wings have long, strong bare quills. Different from other birds, Cassowary females are the larger and more brightly colored of the genders with larger casques. The casque, or helmet, found on all Cassowary heads begin to develop at one or two years of age. It is made up of a sponge-like material covered in a thick layer of keratin, the same material of human fingernails. There is no fully understood reason for the casque, but it is theorized it can be used to show dominance, a birds age, or to be used as a shock absorber when pushing their heads through the dense rain forest underbrush. Another proposed reason for the casque would be for sound. Both the Dwarf and Southern Cassowary can emit low frequency sounds, called booms, that enable them to communicate to one another through the dense rain forest. Other forms of communication used are hisses and whistles, while rumbles or the clapping of their beaks are used when threatened others. This intimidating rumble is so low and strong that it is reported to be felt in the bones. The rumble is the lowest known call of any bird and is just barely at the edge of human hearing. Although, they are extremely difficult to study in the wild for they are Crepuscular, active during dawn and dusk, and are known to retreat and hide in the thick forest. Two of the three species of Cassowary possess wattles, bare fleshy pouches of skin that hang from the neck which are brightly colored depending on the species. Only the Dwarf Cassowary does not have a wattle. For the Southern and Northern Cassowary, these wattles can be used to help indicate the bird's mood or relay other social cues, although researchers are not sure what. These birds are Frugivores, feeding on several hundred varieties of fruit. However, due to their short digestive tract, these birds often leave behind droppings that contain the fruit's seeds undigested. A rare Australian tree, Ryparosa, even was shown to be more likely to sprout after going through the Cassowary's digestive tract. Many other species of plant even rely on the passage through a Cassowary's digestive tract in order to be able to sprout. These birds are known as the most dangerous in the world. Each bird has three toes on their feet that grow a sharp, knife-like claw on the middle toe that can reach up to 4 inches long and is able to slice open threats in a single kick as well as dig up fallen fruit in leaf litter. These amazing creatures can jump nearly 7 feet straight up into the air and run up to 31 mph. They are even excellent swimmers. Cassowary lifestyle is solitary throughout most of the year, keeping to loosely defined home ranges. If a male happens upon another male, they will fluff up their feathers, stretch, and rumble until one of them retreats. However, if a male and female meet, the female can make a male retreat simply by stretching and staring at him. June to October, when the rain forest's fruit is most abundant, is when breeding season occurs. Males will strut in a circle around a female and call a series of low booms to her. Pairs will remain with each other for a few weeks when the female will be ready to lay her eggs. these eggs are laid in a simple nest of scraped clear ground with a few leaves as padding. Three to five eggs are normally in each clutch and green in color. Afterwards, the female Cassowary will leave both the male and the nest. Often, she will find and breed with another male and leave again once the eggs are laid. The male will then remain to incubate the eggs and care for the hatchlings. He will incubate the eggs for around 60 days, then leading his brown and tan striped chicks to regular food sources. These hatchlings will learn from their father for up to 16 months, often times up to 10 months, before they are chased away from the male as they are nearly full grown and able to take care of themselves.