The emu is the large flightless Australian bird that is the second-tallest living bird.
Native to Australia, the emu can reach about 1.9 metres in height. Only the ostrich is taller, although rankings can look different when birds are compared by weight rather than height. Emus are also Australia’s tallest native birds and its largest living birds.
An emu’s long, powerful legs can propel it at roughly 48 kilometres per hour. Its wings are greatly reduced and cannot support flight, but they may help stabilize the bird while running. Emus are adaptable omnivores that wander widely in search of plants, insects and other food.
A common mix-up concerns the cassowary, another flightless Australian bird. Cassowaries are heavier and have a prominent casque and vivid blue-and-red neck skin, but they are generally shorter. Emu chicks are striped, and the male—not the female—incubates the eggs and cares for the young.