Emu War

caused by emus Following World War I, large numbers of discharged veterans who served in the war were given land by the Australian government to take up farming within Western Australia, often in agriculturally marginal areas. With the onset of the Great Depression in 1929, these farmers were encouraged to increase their wheat crops, with the government promising—and failing to deliver—assistance in the form of subsidies. Because of the recommendations and the promised subsidies, wheat prices continued to fall, and by October 1932, the situation intensified, with the farmers preparing to harvest the season's crop while simultaneously threatening to refuse to deliver the wheat. The farmers' difficulties were worsened by the arrival of approximately 20,000 emus. Emus regularly migrate after their breeding season, heading to the coast from the inland regions. With the cleared land and additional water supplies being made available for livestock by the Western Australian farmers, the emus found that the cultivated lands were good habitat, and they began to foray into farm territory—in particular the marginal farming land around Chandler and Walgoolan. Farmers relayed their concerns about the birds ravaging their crops, and a deputation of ex-soldiers were sent to meet with the Minister of Defence, Sir George Pearce. Having served in World War I, the soldier-settlers were well aware of the effectiveness of machine guns, and they requested their deployment. The minister readily agreed, although with conditions attached: the guns were to be used by military personnel, troop transport was to be financed by the Western Australian government, and the farmers would provide food, accommodation, and payment for the ammunition. Pearce also supported the deployment on the grounds that the birds would make good target practice, while it has also been argued that some in the government may have viewed the operation as a way of being seen to be helping the Western Australian farmers, as well as to stave off the nascent secession movement. Toward that end, a cinematographer from Fox Movietone was enlisted. == The "war" ==

ordered the army to cull the emu population. He was later called the "Minister of the Emu War" in parliament by Senator James Dunn. Military involvement was due to begin in October 1932. armed with two Lewis guns and 10,000 rounds of ammunition. First attempt On 2 November, the men travelled to Campion, where some 50 emus were sighted. but there was only limited success despite his efforts. At one stage, Meredith even went so far as to mount one of the guns on a truck, a move that proved to be ineffective, as the truck was unable to gain on the birds, and the ride was so rough that the gunner was unable to fire any shots. After the withdrawal, Major Meredith compared the emus to Zulus and commented on the striking manoeuvrability of the emus, even while badly wounded. Second attempt , Prime Minister Joseph Lyons (pictured) was mockingly asked by Lang Labor MP Rowley James whether a medal would be struck for the soldiers. After the withdrawal of the military, the emu attacks on crops continued. Farmers again asked for support, citing the hot weather and drought that brought emus invading farms in the thousands. James Mitchell, the Premier of Western Australia, lent his strong support for the renewal of military assistance. At the same time, a report from the Base Commander was issued that indicated 300 emus had been killed in the initial operation. In assessing the success of the cull, an article in the Coolgardie Miner on 23 August 1935 reported that although the use of machine guns had been "criticised in many quarters, the method proved effective and saved what remained of the wheat". == Aftermath ==

Despite the problems encountered with the cull, the farmers of the region once again requested military assistance in 1934, 1943, and 1948, but were turned down by the government. Instead, the bounty system that had been instigated in 1923 was continued, and this proved to be effective: 57,034 bounties were claimed over a six-month period in 1934. Dominic Serventy and Hubert Whittell, the eminent Australian ornithologists, described the "war" as "an attempt at the mass destruction of the birds". Throughout 1930 and onward, exclusion barrier fencing became a popular means of keeping emus out of agricultural areas (in addition to other vermin, such as dingoes and rabbits). In November 1950, Hugh Leslie raised the issues of emus in federal parliament and urged Army Minister Josiah Francis to release a quantity of .303 ammunition from the army for the use of farmers. The minister approved the release of 500,000 rounds of ammunition. == Legacy ==

An action-comedy film, titled The Emu War, premiered at Monster Fest on 22 October 2023. Another action-comedy movie retelling of the events called The Great Emu War, written by John Cleese, Monty Franklin, Rob Schneider, Camilla Cleese, and Jim Jefferies, was aiming to begin production in 2023 or 2024. == See also ==