Emu
"Big Bird? Australia's largest flightless bird the Emu"
No good sticking your head in the sand?
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The Emu is Australia largest flightless bird.
It's claim to fame is - The bird is featured on the Australian coat of arms opposite the Kangaroo. Both of these creatures and
renowned for never taking a step back wards.
Interestingly the birds name, emu comes from a Portuguese word 'ema', and it's meaning is 'large bird'. The male Emu stands between two and two
and half meters tall and has long powerful legs. When running will reach speeds like 50 km per hour.
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The Emu is a part of the Ratites family of birds which are the oldest of the flightless birds with flat breastbones. Ratites
include ostriches, cassowaries and the New Zealand kiwis. The birds feathers are very light and abundant and cover there egg shaped body this
allows the bird to cope with all changes in weather.
The Emus are very adapted to life in Australia and are able to survive in just about any environment. The bird prefers the open and remote
places like the warm dry plains outback near Australia's centre. But you will find them in the tropical areas in the north, and around the colder
climates down south.
Emus have long thin necks allowing the bird to produce deep grunting sounds. They eat a variety of foods, seeds, insects, grasshoppers are
a favourite. They also eat fruits, plants, flowers and often graze on young grass.
When breedingand the female finds a partner, both will build the nest which consists of trodden grasses usually in open country. The female
will lay between 5 and 20 dark green eggs. Once she has done her job laying the eggs she will often just walk off and join another group and find
another mate leaving the male to incubates the eggs which goes on for about ten weeks. He remains until all the chicks hatch and father them for
around two years.
The birds are unable to fly in times of danger, but they can run and when running at speed there stride can be as wide as 3 meters. When
being attacked by predators they will run in a zigzag pattern, they are also know to left a leg and give a nasty kick.
Emus are now farmed for their meat, feathers, skin and is a very viable industry.
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