THE EMU PAGE
The emu is a prehistoric bird
thought to have roamed the outback of Australia some 80 million years
ago. The aborigines looked upon the emu as the core of their
existence. The emu provided them with food, clothing, shelter and
spiritual sustenance. It is a flightless bird, belonging to the
Ratite group along with the Ostrich, Rhea, Cassowary and Kiwi. The
emu can stretch to about six feet in height and weigh up to 150
pounds. They are basically gently in nature and love to run and play
chase. The emu tames easily and makes an interesting pet. They
require little shelter, tolerate all kinds of weather, eat almost
anything and are very hardy.
Punch and Judy are a pair of
three year old Emus who were incubator raised in Rhode Island. They
came to Stonefield Farm when they were about five months old and
share the pastures with all the other animals. On April 4, 2000,
after Punch (the Male) sat on eight eggs for 52 days without eating
or drinking, the first of five chicks hatched. It is VERY unusual to
have emu chicks hatch naturally in northern climates. Emus are still
on Australian time and lay their eggs in our winter which is
Australia's summer. Therefore the eggs are always hatched in
incubators. We are thoroughly enjoying watching the chicks grow
outdoors in a pen with Daddy still doing all the worrying. Judy takes
no interest in motherhood and wanders around the fields doing her own
thing unless its is time to eat.
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