A Curious Emu – As I stepped forward and to the side (so as to capture a good angle), the emu kept the rhythm of this little dance.   Keenly interested in what I was doing, or was it that perhaps my bag contained a treat?

A Limited Edition Print (25) fine art photograph by Elizabeth McNamee

Adult Emus are covered with shaggy grey-brown feathers except for the neck and head, which are largely naked and bluish-black. The wings are greatly reduced, but the legs are long and powerful. Each foot has three forward-facing toes and no hind toe.  They also have quite a long stride when running. One stride of an emu can be 9 feet long with speed up to 25km.

Standing at up to 1.9 metres tall, the flightless Emu is one of the world’s largest birds.  The female Emu lays a dozen or so green eggs, and leaves the male to incubate them on his own, after hatching the striped chicks are looked after by the male, with no contribution from the female.

They have a lifespan of 12 – 20 years.  The main habitats of the Emu are sclerophyll forest and savannah woodland. These birds are rarely found in rainforest or very arid areas. According to the IUCN their conservation status is of ‘least concern‘. In Australia there are between 625,000 to 725,000 wild emus.

These Fine Art Giclee Prints are printed using archival pigment inks and made using 100% cotton, museum grade, archival quality 330gms paper with an ultra-smooth finish which is acid, lignin and chloride free with ph buffering for superb durability and print stability.  These prints are supplied unframed and without a mat.