Cassowary, Etty Bay

Me and Tamara are up north enjoying a week away to mark our ninth wedding anniversary. We (I) couldn't come this far without trying to see a Cassowary whose only Australian population are in far north Queensland. According to my research the first place to try was Etty Bay. So, we drove back down south from Port Douglas to try our luck. Sure enough we got there, saw a Cassowary, looked at a gigantic monitor and an even bigger Golden Orb Spider and then drove the three hours back. Magic!


The Cassowary showed up for ten minutes soon after we arrived.

Southern Cassowary

Southern Cassowary walking straight for me.

Southern Cassowary

Despite appearances I think this might have been a female. The brighter coloured neck and 'wattles' are what to look out for. But, then, I've only seen one bird and can't really compare. Just wanted to get the ballbag shot in really.

This big Lace Monitor was quite happy hugging the base of a tree.

Golden Orb Spider

It was the biggest spider we'd ever seen. The lady at the servo had named it Charlotte. She had apparently already eaten quite a few boyfriends - the spider, that is.