Study Finds 6,000 Years of Emu Mysteries
A recent study that is shedding light on the emu an Australian icon and its key behavioural patterns, has found it has been roaming around Australia for over 6,000 years.
Western Sydney University researcher Julia Ryeland, who along with researchers from Western Sydney University and the University of Tasmania, wrote the new study said that despite the emu being indigenous to large areas it is still regarded as something of an enigma to native fauna experts.
“They’re so widespread, but we really don’t know much about them,” Ryeland said. “We don’t even know basic things like lifespan.”
Emus have existed in different parts of Australia for the past 6,000 years
A recent study revealed climate is the primary factor dictating where emus live
Man-made climate change unlikely to threaten emus over the next few decades
Found in healthy numbers across most of Australia, but low numbers in the east
Emus also like rainfall across most of the year, but not heavy rainfall in summer
TRAVEL DARLING RIVER RUN - AAP
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The emu - an iconic Australian bird, but also something of an enigma. They re so widespread, but we really don t know much about them, says Western Sydney University PhD student Julia Ryeland. How do you know how they re going to be affected by anthropogenic change when we don t even know basic things like lifespan?
Ms Ryeland and other researchers at Western Sydney University and the University of Tasmania are the authors of a new study that sheds light on the mysterious bird.
The scientists investigated where emus are likely to live in Australia, as well as tracking where they have spent the past 6000 years and what will happen in the next 50 years.