In 1932, Australia sent soldiers armed with machine guns to stop 20,000 emus tearing through wheat farms — the birds scattered under fire, outran military trucks and turned what looked like an easy cull into one of history’s strangest defeats

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All 1 reports on Fri, 4 September 2026

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Rowan Mott Harold Thornby Wendy Porter Murray Johnson Richard Cook Regional Development Agricultural Bank Bush Heritage Foundation University Of Queensland Department Of Primary Industries National Geographic Romanian Walgoolan, Western Australia, Australia Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia Australian Kalbarri, Western Australia, Australia Perth, Western Australia, Australia Merredin, Western Australia, Australia

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How it spread - 1 original report

Fri, 4 September 2026
1 report
- scienceblog.com10:45first to report
  In 1932, Australia sent soldiers armed with machine guns to stop 20,000 emus tearing through wheat farms — the birds scattered under fire, outran military trucks and turned what looked like an easy cull into one of history’s strangest defeats
  When the Australian military declared war on emus in 1932, they didn't expect to lose.