The toes and claws are sizeable and can reach up to 6 inches in length. Emus are very tall, and the second-tallest bird left on earth, after the ostrich. A large bird like this is capable of intimidating and even injuring an adult human, but these events are rare and usually superficial. Thankfully, these quirky little weirdos are doing quite well, though climate change does seem to be making their lives more difficult. Julien is an exploration-minded, curiosity-driven traveler and blogger. Emus are native to Australia and inhabit a variety of environments Forex easy across the mainland.
Males build the nest
Emus are omnivores that feed on seeds, fruits, flowers and insects. They travel long distances to exploit seasonal food resources and play a role in seed dispersal. As long-legged, flightless birds, you’d expect emus to be fast.
- Socially, emus are generally solitary but may form loose flocks, especially when food is abundant.
- So, armed with this knowledge, it might not be as surprising that a kiwi’s closest relative is the emu, a much more powerful and heavy animal, in a closely related family.
- These subspecies exhibited minor variations in size and coloration, adapted to different environmental conditions across Australia.
- The female then lays 8 to 10 large shiny green eggs that look like avocados and weigh nearly 680 grams each.
These flocks are not highly structured and tend to be temporary. Emus are also known to undertake seasonal migrations, walking long distances to find food and water. Their body is covered in soft, fluffy feathers that range in color from grey to brown, providing effective insulation against the temperature extremes of their habitat. Once the eggs hatch, the male emu will stay with the chicks for the next 18 months, teaching them to hunt for food.
They migrate on foot on journeys as far as 500 kilometres or more to find abundant feeding areas. The emu can grow to be as tall as 2 metres (6.5 feet) in height (1 – 1.3 metres at the shoulder) and weigh up to 45 kilograms (99 pounds). Male and female emus are similar in appearance although females are generally larger. Emus have soft, long, brown feathers on their plumage which has a shaggy appearance and shorter downy feathers on their heads. The Emu is the second largest bird in the world, the largest being the similar looking, Ostrich. Although Emus resemble Ostriches, emus have a longer, lower profile and 3 toes on each foot (Ostriches have only 2 toes on each foot).
Emu Predators and Threats What Kills Emus?
Their ability to travel long distances and consume a wide variety of food sources allows them to thrive in environments that vary from season to season. Emus are native to Australia and are found in a range of habitats across the mainland, from coastal regions to arid inland areas. They are highly adaptable and can live in various environments, including forests, savannas, grasslands, and desert areas.
- Their ability to consume a wide range of food items helps them to survive in different environments and under varying conditions.
- The most likely entomology for the word “emu” is that it was an Arabic word that early Portuguese explorers adapted as “ema” to describe large birds such as the ostrich.
- Each foot has three forward facing toes, each of which has a long toenail.
- In addition, emus are protected under Australian law, which helps to control hunting and manage any potential threats to their population.
- The male parent emu cares for his chicks for up to 18 months, and most survive to adulthood.
Those fluffy feathers
Their distribution is widespread, but they tend to avoid densely populated areas, dense forests, and arid deserts. Emus range over large areas, foraging on fruits, seeds, plant shoots, small animals, animal droppings, and insects. They mate and nest over the Australian winter, and it’s not always a loving affair—females have been known to fight viciously over unpaired males.
Emu Running
An Emus breeding behaviour incorporates male incubation, this is because the male experiences hormone changes. Emus are the only birds with gastrocnemius muscles (the same as human calf muscles) in the back of the lower legs. Emus have large multi folded nasal passages for normal breathing in cooler weather. Emus have strong long legs and although they cannot fly, they can run at speeds of 50 kilometres per hour (31 miles per hour). One tale tells of the creation of the sun by throwing an Emu egg into the sky.
Domestic emus are playful, mischievous birds that have a specific kind of excited wiggle that they do when they’re enjoying themselves. Emus are part of a diverse order ranging from the humble kiwi to the largest birds that ever roamed the earth. They’re one of the many ratites that evolved to be enormous, and they handle it well. In the wild, emus can live up to 20 years, and sometimes longer in captivity.
The female emu lays her eggs (on average 11 eggs) which are large, thick-shelled and green in color and then leaves the male emu to do the brooding. The female emu will mate with other males and will produce multiple clutches of eggs. The Emu is common in mainland Australia but will avoid heavily populated areas, arid land and dense forests. They can survive in most habitats throughout Australia but most common locations are sclerophyll forests and savanna woodlands and grasslands. She lays her eggs in the nest the male has built, and then she leaves.
Habitat of the Emu
They subsequently used the term to describe cassowaries they discovered in Indonesia and New Guinea. It was then used by other European explorers, such as the Dutch, to describe the bird we know today as the Emu. Once the female has laid her eggs, she abandons them and walks away, leaving the male to look after the brood.
Diet and Feeding Behavior
They live in loose flocks that move according to rainfall and food availability, covering large distances each year. Several emus were killed, and at the peak of the war, the casualties ammased at a rate of 100 birds per week. This topped out at 986 dead emus, at a rate of ten bullets used per bird. In classic human fashion, the colonists set up shop uninvited among the native habitats and then got upset by the natives being there. Males do both, and in exchange, he has access to multiple hens, who, between them, will compile a clutch of up to 25 emu eggs that the male will then incubate. They are the 5th heaviest bird in the world weighing up to 60kg, behind the two species of ostrich and cassowaries.
The common emu is the only survivor of several forms exterminated by European settlers. The International Union for the Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) lists the common emu as a species of least concern. Ecological studies estimate that there are more than 630,000 adult emus and note that emu populations are likely stable. The King Island emu (D. minor), a species found only on King Island in the Bass Strait, was last seen in the wild in 1802, and the last captive specimens died in 1822. The Kangaroo Island emu (D. baudinianus), found only on Kangaroo Island in South Australia, was likely hunted to extinction prior to 1827.
