488 ORDER CURSORES ; RHEA, CASSOWARY. 



tl-o wings are rather more developed than in the African Sj-ecies 

 and are terminated by a hooked spur ; and the feet possess tnreo 

 toes, armed with stout claws, the central one being mucn the 

 largest. Two species are now known ; the Nandu^ wnich 

 stands about five feet high ; and Darwin s Rhea, which is much 

 smaller. Both these species are partly aquatic in their habits ; 

 the former is chiefly found upon the plains bordering the river 

 La Plata, extending through the South of Brazil to the North 

 of Patagonia ; whilst the latter takes its place in Southern 

 Patagonia. 



440. The Cassowary is a native of Java and the adjacent 

 islands of the Indian Archipelago ; it is much inferior in size to 

 the Ostrich, its height when 

 erect being about five feet ; 

 but it is robustly built, and 

 very strong. In many im- 

 portant points of internal 

 structure, it differs from the 

 Ostrich ; particularly in the 

 conformation of its digestive 

 organs, which are not adapt- 

 ed for hard coarse diet, but 

 for eggs, fruits, and tender 

 succulent herbage. It is 

 not common even in its na- 

 tive islands ; but is some- 

 times kept tame there. The 

 head is surmounted by a 

 sort of crest or helmet, which 

 is supported by a bony 

 growth resembling that of the Hornbills ( 397); and, as in that 

 group, the appendage is not developed in the young Bird. The 

 skin of the head and neck is naked, and coloured blue, purple, and 

 scarlet, blended together ; and the lower part of the neck is fur- 

 nished with a pair of wattles. The pinions are very small, and 

 are concealed between the plumage ; they bear, instead of feathers, 

 five cylindrical stalks without any barbs. The Emeu, a native 



