How Australia’s Military Took on Birds—and Lost

AKA The Great Emu War

There are battles fought over land, power, and resources.

But rarely do you hear about a war waged against... birds.

Yet in 1932, Australia found itself embroiled in a peculiar conflict that would become known as The Great Emu War.

It was a confrontation between humans and one of the country’s most iconic animals, the emu, and the results were as unexpected as they were absurd.

This strange episode in Australian history is not widely known.

Post-WWI Australia

To understand the origins of the Great Emu War, we need to start in the aftermath of World War I.

Following the war, the Australian government was keen to resettle returning soldiers, many of whom had fought bravely in Europe.

The government developed a scheme to allocate land to veterans, particularly in Western Australia, where vast tracts of land lay undeveloped.

The idea was simple: give these soldiers farms to work and help them reintegrate into civilian life, all while boosting the nation’s agricultural output.

In theory, it was a well-intentioned plan. But in practice, it soon became a recipe for disaster.

The land provided to the soldiers was often barren and unsuitable for farming.

The Great Depression hit in the late 1920s, causing grain prices to plummet and leaving many farmers struggling to make a living.

On top of these challenges came another unexpected enemy—the emu.

Enter the Emus

For those unfamiliar with the emu, it’s worth noting that these large, flightless birds are uniquely Australian.

They stand over six feet tall, can run at speeds of up to 30 miles per hour, and have powerful legs that can easily trample crops.

Normally, emus live in the interior of Australia, but each year, they migrate to the coast in search of food and water.

In 1932, Western Australia experienced a particularly bad migration season. Some 20,000 emus descended upon the farmlands that had been promised to the soldiers.

The emus, following their natural instincts, saw the farmland as a perfect food source, feasting on wheat and destroying fences in their wake.

For the struggling farmers, this was the last straw. Their crops were being devastated, and their livelihoods were in jeopardy.

The farmers, many of whom were former soldiers, turned to the Australian government for help. They demanded action, and in response, the government decided to send in the military.

This is where the story takes a turn from the ordinary to the utterly surreal.

The Call to Arms

In November 1932, Major G.P.W. Meredith of the Royal Australian Artillery was tasked with leading a military operation to curb the emu invasion. Armed with two Lewis machine guns and 10,000 rounds of ammunition, Meredith and his men were confident that they could handle a few birds.

After all, how hard could it be?

What the soldiers didn’t account for, however, was the cunning and resilience of the emus.

The birds, unlike humans, didn’t follow orders or gather in convenient groups to be mowed down. Instead, they scattered as soon as the firing began, darting off in different directions and making it nearly impossible for the soldiers to get a clear shot.

In their first encounter with the emus, the soldiers managed to kill around a dozen birds. Hardly the decisive victory they had hoped for. As the days went on, it became clear that the emus were winning this strange war. The birds would outrun the soldiers and their guns, and even when hit, many of them proved remarkably tough. Some emus, after being shot multiple times, would continue running as if nothing had happened. One account even describes an emu with five bullets in it still managing to escape.

The soldiers tried different tactics. They mounted one of the machine guns on the back of a truck, hoping this would allow them to chase down the emus more effectively. But the rough terrain of the Australian outback made it impossible to aim accurately from a moving vehicle, and the emus simply outran the truck. It was a debacle.

A Bird-Brained Defeat

After nearly a month of frustration, Major Meredith and his men had little to show for their efforts.

Out of the 20,000 emus, they had killed only about 1,000. The operation was deemed a failure, and the military was recalled. The emus, it seemed, had won the war.

The story quickly became a source of ridicule. Newspapers at the time gleefully reported on the army’s inability to defeat a group of birds, and the Great Emu War became something of a national joke. Even today, it’s often cited as one of the most absurd episodes in military history.

But while the outcome was humorous, the Great Emu War also highlighted a deeper issue. It was a classic case of human beings attempting to control nature and failing spectacularly.

The emus were simply doing what they had always done—migrating in search of food.

The farmers, meanwhile, were trying to protect their livelihoods, but they were ill-equipped to deal with such an overwhelming natural force. And the military, trained for combat against human enemies, found itself outmatched by the sheer unpredictability of wildlife.

What Did We Learn?

Nothing...

No, just kidding (somewhat).

In the wake of the Great Emu War, the Australian government didn’t give up on trying to control the emu population.

Instead of using machine guns, they turned to a more practical solution—fencing.

Duh...

By building large, sturdy fences around the farmlands, they were able to keep most of the emus at bay. Over time, they also introduced a bounty system, paying farmers for each emu they killed, which helped reduce the population.

Emu War in Popular Culture

While the Great Emu War may have been a small disaster for the Australian military, it has since become a beloved oddity in popular culture.

The event has been referenced in books, movies, and even video games.

For example, in 2019, an indie developer created a game called "Emu War!", where players take on the role of either the Australian military or the emus themselves.

The war has also inspired memes and humorous retellings, ensuring that this quirky chapter of history won’t be forgotten.

A Battle for the Ages

In the end, the Great Emu War is only a curious footnote in Australian history—one of those strange, improbable events that feels almost too ridiculous to be true.

And yet, it happened.

Armed soldiers took on a flock of emus and lost.

The real lesson of the Great Emu War is that nature, in all its unpredictability, often has the upper hand.