Road Show Character Facts

Cassie The Cassowary

The Cassowary is one of the few flightless birds in the world alongside the Emu, the Kiwi, the Rhea and the Ostrich.
The Australian Cassowary’s scientific name is Casuarius Casaurius Johnsonii. It is also sometimes called the Southern Cassowary or Double-wattled Cassowary.
The Cassowary’s feet have three large toes with a spike on each foot up to 120mm long!
The male cassowaries are the ones that look after the eggs and raise the chicks once they have hatched.
Cassowaries are lonely animals, when they become teenagers they are kicked out from their father’s habitat and must find their own home.
The female Cassowary is larger and more attractive than the male.
Cassowaries are an endangered species.
Cassowaries are VERY important to the rainforest. They are the only animals who can carry the seeds of more than 100 different types of plant and tree.
A Cassowary’s territory can be as large as 7km.
Handfeeding a Cassowary is NOT an act of kindness; it will ‘tame’ the Cassowary and expose it to more dangers.

Growing up to up to 7 metres long, The Saltwater Crocodile is the world’s largest reptile.
The wet season is when the Saltwater Crocodile breed, laying up to some 60 eggs at one time.
It is called the Saltwater Crocodile, or ‘Saltie’, because it lives in salt water areas. It’s also known as the Estuarine Crocodile, its scientific name is Crocodiliyus Porosus.
The female Crocodiles tend to be smaller than the males.
A Crocodile has between 64 to 68 teeth.
Saltwater Crocodiles eat Frogs, Crabs, Lizards, Fish, Insects, Birds, Turtles, Dingoes, Wallabies, Cattle and even Sharks!
BE CAREFUL! Saltwater Crocodiles are not man-eaters. But a number of people are injured or even killed by crocs every year.
When attacking, a Saltwater Croc will use its powerful tail and jaws to thrash its victim, dragging it into the water afterwards and drowning it.
‘Salties’ are excellent swimmers; some Saltwater Crocodiles have even been spotted far out at sea.
The Daintree River in Tropical North Queensland is one of Australia’s top destinations for Croc spotting.

.The Great Barrier Reef is visible from outer space!
The Great Barrier Reef is made of various Corals which are actually a living animals and not a type of sea-plant as commonly thought
All Coral on the Great Barrier Reef breed once a year, simultaneously. They release their eggs and in November, during the full Moon and the days following; this is known as Coral Spawning.
The colours of coral are created by algae.
Covering More than 300,000 square kilometres, The Great Barrier Reef is the world’s largest coral reef ecosystem.
.The Great Barrier Reef is made up of more than 3,000 reefs and more than 600 islands. It is one of the biggest tourist attractions in all of Australia and is one of the seven Natural Wonders of The World.
Coral likes to live in warm shallow water where there is a lot of salt water current and plenty of light.
There are two different types of Coral, hard and soft, and there are many hundreds of different kinds.
One of the largest dangers to Coral and The Great Barrier Reef is The Crown of Thorns Starfish.
.A great threat to the Reef is Bleaching. Bleaching has caused coral to die in large numbers.

.Also called the Anemonefish, the Clown fish’s scientific name is Amphipron Percula.
.Clownfish can grow from 2 to 5 inches long.
.Clownfish are generally very peaceful but can become very aggressive and territorial.
Clownfish eat the leftovers from fish consumed by anemone. The leftovers include copepods, isopods and zooplankton.
Clownfish have few ocean predators, but their greatest threat is humans.
.In the wild, the Clownfish can live from 6 -10 years whereas in captivity they will live 3 - 5.
Nemo, from the animated movie Finding Nemo, was a Clownfish.
There are various types of clownfish that range in colours from blue to yellow.
Clownfish are covered in a special slime that stops them from getting stung from the tentacles of anemone.
Clownfish are able to change their sex from male to female!

The Daintree is an hour’s drive north of Cairns; it is Australia’s and one of the world’s most diverse and beautiful rainforest.
The Daintree is the largest chunk of rainforest in Australia, spanning 1200 square kilometres.
The Daintree was declared a World Heritage Listing in 1988.
.It is home to the largest range of rare, endangered plants and animals on Earth.
The Daintree Rainforest is over one hundred and thirty-five million years old! Making it the world’s third oldest rainforest.
The Daintree is home to the IDIOT FRUIT. The bizarrely named plant was discovered when four cattle were found dead after chewing its fruit.
It is IMPOSSIBLE to list every plant and tree species in the Daintree! Only a few notable plants get listed.
Saltwater Crocodiles, Cassowaries, The Golden Orb Spider, Rufous Owls, The Azure Kingfisher, Spotted Cuscus, Bandicoots, Musky-Rat Kangaroos, Sugar Gliders, Goannas, The Giant Tree Frog and The Ulysses Butterfly are just some of the weird and wonderful creatures that live in The Daintree.

Tropical North Queensland is renowned for its clear sunny days.
On average, Tropical North Queensland has 200 days of beautifully warm sunshine every year.
.Even in winter, it can be lovely and warm under the Tropical North Queensland sun, the average temperature is 26 – 27 degrees Celsius. .
Sunlight is the main source for producing Vitamin D in humans!
.Research and surveys have given some insight into the increased levels of happiness and well being of people who live in locations with fine and sunny weather as opposed to people who don’t.
Tropical North Queensland also receives more hours of sunlight during the day as opposed to other areas and cities in the southern states.