In late 1932, Australia faced an unusual enemy: approximately 20,000 emus that were destroying crops in Western Australia. The government’s solution? Deploy the military with machine guns. What followed became known as the Great Emu War — one of the most bizarre military campaigns in history, and one that the emus decidedly won.
The story of the Great Emu War is more than a humorous anecdote about Australia’s wildlife. It reveals the desperation of Depression-era farmers, the limits of military solutions to ecological problems, and the remarkable resilience of one of nature’s most underestimated birds.
The Background: A Feathered Invasion
Following World War I, the Australian government granted farmland in Western Australia to thousands of ex-soldiers as part of a soldier settlement scheme. These veterans, many of whom had survived the horrors of Gallipoli and the Western Front, threw themselves into farming with the same determination that had characterized their military service. By the late 1920s, they had transformed large areas of Western Australia’s marginal land into productive wheat farms.
But the Great Depression devastated wheat prices, threatening the farmers’ already precarious livelihoods. The government had promised subsidies and support that failed to materialize. Farmers who had risked everything to build new lives found themselves facing financial ruin.
Into this already desperate situation came the emus. Each year, after breeding along the coast, vast flocks of emus migrated inland seeking food and water. The wheat farms, with their irrigation systems and fields of ripening grain, were irresistible. An estimated 20,000 birds invaded the Campion and Walgoolan districts in the spring of 1932.
The emus, standing up to 6 feet tall and capable of running at speeds of 30 miles per hour, descended upon the farmlands in enormous numbers. They destroyed fences — the emus would simply crash through wire fencing, creating gaps that allowed rabbits and other pests to enter — trampled crops, and consumed the wheat that represented farmers’ only hope of surviving the economic downturn. Each emu could consume several pounds of grain per day, and 20,000 birds could devastate a wheat field in hours.
The Decision to Fight
The farmers, many of them war veterans, petitioned the Australian government for assistance. They specifically requested military help, asking for machine guns and ammunition to deal with the emu threat. Their language was telling — men who had fought in one of history’s most devastating wars now spoke of the emus as an invading army that required a military response.
Minister of Defence Sir George Pearce proved sympathetic to the request. He saw the operation as an opportunity to provide his troops with target practice while simultaneously helping struggling farmers. The fact that a military operation against birds would generate positive publicity — showing the government supporting its veterans — was an additional incentive.
In November 1932, the Australian military deployed a small force to the wheat belt: Major G.P.W. Meredith of the Royal Australian Artillery, two soldiers, and two Lewis guns with 10,000 rounds of ammunition. The mission seemed straightforward: use superior firepower to eliminate the emu threat. No one anticipated what would follow.
The First Engagement
The military’s first engagement occurred on November 2, 1932, near the town of Campion. Soldiers spotted a group of approximately 50 emus and prepared to open fire. Local settlers had attempted to herd the birds into a position where the machine guns could be most effective.
However, the emus proved far more challenging opponents than anticipated. At the first sound of gunfire, the birds scattered in all directions, running at high speed in an unpredictable zigzag pattern that made them extremely difficult targets. The Lewis guns, designed for use against human infantry advancing in relatively orderly formations, were poorly suited to hitting fast-moving, erratically running birds at range.
Despite firing numerous rounds, the soldiers managed to kill only a handful of birds. The surviving emus fled into the scrubland, where pursuing them was impractical.
Guerrilla Warfare
Over the following days, the pattern repeated itself with dispiriting consistency. The emus seemed to learn from each encounter, becoming increasingly wary of the soldiers and their weapons. Major Meredith noted with grudging admiration that the birds appeared to post sentinels — individual emus that would stand watch while the rest of the flock fed. At the first sign of danger, the sentinels would alert the flock, which would scatter before the soldiers could get within effective range.
The emus also demonstrated a remarkable ability to absorb punishment. Unlike smaller birds, which would be killed instantly by a single bullet, the large, powerfully built emus could sometimes sustain multiple hits and continue running. Their thick feathers and tough skin provided a degree of natural armor that the Lewis guns’ .303 caliber rounds were not always sufficient to overcome at longer ranges.
Major Meredith reportedly commented that “if we had a military division with the bullet-carrying capacity of these birds, it would face any army in the world. They can face machine guns with the invulnerability of tanks.”
Media Coverage and Public Reaction
The campaign attracted significant media attention, much of it satirical. The absurdity of the Australian military engaging in open warfare against flightless birds was too good a story for journalists to pass up. Newspapers ran humorous headlines about the military’s struggle. The Melbourne Age published commentary suggesting that the emus had “won every round so far” against the soldiers.
In the Australian Parliament, the operation became a source of embarrassment. Opposition members mocked the government’s decision to deploy the military against birds. One member suggested awarding the emus campaign medals for their effective resistance.
Conservationists also raised objections, arguing that the emus were native wildlife and that military operations against them were excessive and cruel. The controversy highlighted growing tensions between agricultural interests and wildlife conservation — a debate that continues in Australia to this day.
Withdrawal and Return
After several days of limited success, military command withdrew the operation on November 8, 1932. Reports indicated that fewer than 1,000 emus had been killed despite the use of thousands of rounds of ammunition. The cost per dead emu was embarrassingly high, and the operation had failed to make any significant dent in the overall emu population.
The farmers, still desperate, petitioned for the military to return. After further lobbying, a second deployment was authorized later in November. This second campaign was somewhat more successful, partly because the soldiers had learned from their earlier mistakes and adopted different tactics, including ambush positions at water sources where emus gathered to drink.
By mid-December 1932, the military reported that approximately 986 emus had been killed, with a further 2,500 estimated to have died later from wounds. While these numbers were presented as a success, they represented a tiny fraction of the 20,000-strong emu population. The remaining birds continued to damage crops.
Aftermath and Legacy
The Great Emu War ended without a formal victory for the Australian military. The government eventually addressed the emu problem through a bounty system that proved more effective than military action. Farmers were paid for each emu they killed, providing a financial incentive for ongoing control. By 1934, bounty hunters had successfully claimed kills of approximately 57,000 emus.
The government also invested in improved fencing — including the construction of barriers specifically designed to resist emu penetration — which proved to be the most effective long-term solution. By the late 1930s, the combination of bounties, fencing, and changes in farming practices had reduced the emu problem to manageable levels.
The Great Emu War has become one of Australia’s most beloved historical episodes, frequently appearing in lists of history’s most absurd military engagements. It serves as a humorous reminder that superior firepower does not guarantee victory against an unconventional opponent, that nature does not always cooperate with human plans, and that sometimes the best solution to a problem is not the most dramatic one.
The emus, for their part, continue to thrive in the Australian bush, seemingly unbothered by their place in military history. They remain one of Australia’s most iconic species — and, as the events of 1932 demonstrated, one of its most formidable.
