The Emus That Founded Their Own Preserve

The east coast of Australia once had plenty of emus, but those days are gone. The native population has been decimated by introduced predators, such as foxes. Now it's rare to see an emu in the wild anywhere along the east coast. Except at Potato Point, which has 159 people and almost as many emus. Around 30 years ago, a prosperous businessman brought about a dozen emus from Western Australia to his private island off Potato Point. He didn't know emus could swim. They can and they did, and set up housekeeping in the small town.

The emu population grew, delighting the residents of Potato Point. All these years later, the vegetation in the area is being restored by the emus' talent in spreading seeds that cling to them or move through their digestive system. They are protected from predators by the staff of the Eurobodalla National Park, which surrounds Potato Point. Read about the colony of emus who came to stay at ABC. -via Nag on the Lake

(Image credit: Annette Teng)