Cassowary (Casuarius spp.) Fact Sheet: Distribution & Habitat

General

• Species distributions generally do not overlap (Pratt and Beehler 2015)
• Cassowaries occur at low population densities (Westcott 1999)

Southern Cassowary (Pratt and Beehler 2015; Birdlife International 2016b; Folch et al. 2017a)

• New Guinea and northeastern Australia
• Lowlands of west and southern New Guinea
• 3 subpopulations in Queensland, Australia
• Two in Cape York (north of Coen), one in Wet Tropics (Townsville, north to Cooktown)
• Found on islands near mainland New Guinea
• Aru and Dolak Islands
• Seram Island (west of New Guinea)
• Probably introduced
• Range overlaps with Northern Cassowary in only a few places (Pratt and Beehler 2015)

Northern Cassowary (Pratt and Beehler 2015; Folch et al. 2017c)

• Western and northern New Guinea
• Found on islands near mainland New Guinea
• Yapen Island (Bay Islands)
• Salawarti
• Cassowary on Batanta presumed to be the North Cassowary

Dwarf Cassowary (Folch et al. 2017b)

• New Guinea
• C. b. bennetti
• Upland New Guinea
• Yapen Island (Bay Islands)
• New Britain Island
• Probably introduced
• C. b. westermanni
• Bird’s Head (Vogelkop)

General

• Generally associated with dense, tropical rainforest (Pratt and Beehler 2015)
• Prefer old growth forest
• Some populations may associate with disturbed habitats that provide abundant fruit (Biggs 2013)

Southern Cassowary (Pratt and Beehler 2015; Folch et al. 2017a)

• Vegetation and habitats: southern lowland forests and savannahs
• New Guinea: rainforest, gallery forest, swamp-forest, and savanna woodland forest; forest edges and riverbanks; mangroves and fruit plantations
• Australia: tropical rainforest, eucalyptus woodland, and palm scrub
• Elevation range
• New Guinea: often to 500 m (1,640 ft) (lowlands); rarely higher, but up to 1,100 m (3,609 ft) (Folch et al. 2017a)
• Seram: reported up to 1,200 m (3937 ft)
• Australia: any altitude

Northern Cassowary (Birdlife International 2016c; Folch et al. 2017c)

• Vegetation and habitats: northern lowland rainforest, swamp-forest, river flood plains
• Elevation range
• Mostly in lowlands, but up to 700 m (2,300 ft)

Dwarf Cassowary (Davies 2002; Birdlife International 2016c; Folch et al. 2017b)

• Vegetation and habitats: montane forests and lowlands
• Forest and secondary growth in hills and mountains
• Lowland forests of New Guinea, where other cassowary species are absent
• Elevation range
• To 3,300 m (10,826 ft), occasionally to 3,600 m (11,811 ft)
• Avoids lowlands (Pratt and Beehler 2015)

Cassowaries are found in New Guinea and northeastern Australia.

Click below for each species' detailed distribution (from IUCN):

Southern Cassowary
Northern Cassowary
Dwarf Cassowary

Adapted from www.d-maps.com, according to each species' IUCN fact sheet.