---
title: "Emu (Dromaius novaehollandiae) | AnimalTracks.wiki"
description: "A flightless bird whose father sits on the eggs for eight weeks without eating or drinking."
image: "https://animaltracks.wiki/images/animals/emu-1.webp"
published: "2026-09-29"
updated: "2026-09-29"
---
# Emu (*Dromaius novaehollandiae*)
> **Status**: Checked against 5 sources, listed under Sources below.
> **Tagline**: A flightless bird whose father sits on the eggs for eight weeks without eating or drinking.
> **Soundtrack Vibe**: Neo-Classical & Baroque Chamber // Max Richter, "Dream 3 (in the midst of my life)"
> **Soundtrack Links**: [Spotify](https://open.spotify.com/track/1fetTbR2on5hKEE8K9oelC)
> **Vibe Match**: An emu father sits on the nest for about eight weeks and does not eat, drink or defecate the whole time. Max Richter's Sleep, which Dream 3 comes from, is a lullaby more than eight hours long, written to be heard while you sleep.
## Biological Superpowers & Stats
- **Taxonomy**: *Dromaius novaehollandiae*
- **Danger Level**: Medium
- **Conservation Status**: Least Concern ([IUCN Red List](https://doi.org/10.2305/iucn.uk.2018-2.rlts.t22678117a131902466.en))
- **Superpower**: Fathers that sit on the nest for about 8 weeks without eating or drinking
- **Habitat**: Woodland, heathland, shrubland and sand plains across mainland Australia
- **Diet**: Fruit, seeds, young shoots, insects and small animals
- **Tags**: bird, bipedal, omnivore, grassland
## Natural History & Behavior
## Built to run, armed to kick
The emu is the second-largest living bird, after the ostrich. An adult stands 1.5 to 1.9 m tall. Females are larger and heavier than males: the Smithsonian puts males at 50 to 55 kg and females about 5 kg more. The wings are tiny, under 20 cm long, and useless for flight. The legs do the work. Each foot has three toes and fewer bones and muscles than a flying bird's, and an emu can sprint at 48 km/h for quite a distance. One stride can be almost 2.7 m long. An emu can also jump 2.1 m straight up.
If it must defend itself, it strikes and rips with heavy feet and nails. A hiss warns off dingoes, and it can rattle its stiff tail feathers to scare predators away.
> **Two shafts per follicle** Feathers grow from follicles, just like hairs. Most birds grow one feather per follicle, but an emu grows a double-shafted feather from each one. Its barbs sit far apart and lack the usual hooks that attach to the other barbs. Each hangs loose and gives the plumage a hairlike look.
## The dad who sits for eight weeks
The female lays 5 to 15 dark green eggs in a nest of twigs, leaves and grass on the ground, then wanders off. One egg equals 10 to 12 chicken eggs in weight and volume.
The male does the sitting. For about eight weeks he gets up only to turn the eggs and tidy the nest. During incubation he does not eat, drink or defecate, and he can lose up to one-third of his body weight. He stays alive on stored fat. The chicks hatch striped in black, brown and cream, which helps them blend into long grass, and they can walk minutes after hatching. The father stays with them for about five to seven months.
## Following the rain
Emus live across most of mainland Australia and nowhere else. They use eucalyptus forest, woodland, heathland, shrubland and sand plains, and reach deserts only after heavy rain. They eat fruit, seeds, young shoots, insects, small animals and even animal droppings. They also swallow pebbles of up to 45 g, which help grind food.
Flocks often travel long distances for food and water. Emus can move hundreds of kilometres, sometimes 15 to 25 km a day, and they seem to steer mainly by the sight of rain-bearing clouds. Seeds swallowed whole often come out whole. Wandering emus spread the seeds of many low-growing plants as they go.
They talk with a pouch in the throat that is part of the windpipe. Inflated, it makes deep booming and drumming sounds that carry up to 2 km.
In the wild an emu lives five to ten years, and longer in human care.
## Frequently Asked Questions
### Did Australia really go to war with emus?
Sort of. In the early 1930s a large migration of emus reached an agricultural town and ate or spoiled vast wheat fields. The military was called in to wipe them out, in what some call the "Emu War", and the operation failed. Natural camouflage and a talent for fleeing let the emus avoid detection. *(Source: [Shorter]())*
### How big is an emu egg?
About 13 cm long and 9 cm wide, and between 450 and 650 g. The shell is shiny and dark green, with small pits on the surface. *(Source: [San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance]())*
### Are emus endangered?
No. The IUCN Red List rates the species Least Concern, and the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance describes the population as currently stable, though drought and wildfires could affect it. The emu subspecies that lived in Tasmania is gone. It died out around 1865, after Europeans arrived. *(Source: [San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance]())*
## Sources
1. [Emu. San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance.]()
2. [Emu. Smithsonian's National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute.]()
3. [Boles. Emu. Australian Museum.]()
4. [Shorter. Dromaius novaehollandiae (emu). Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan.]()
5. [Dromaius novaehollandiae. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2018: e.T22678117A131902466.]()
*Published September 29, 2026. Last updated September 29, 2026.*
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