Growing up to incredible heights of up to a whopping 2 meters, emus are one fascinating creature to not only look at but also learn about.
Apart from their fascinatingly fluffy appearance, and their curious large eyes, one other striking element about these birds are their eggs.
That’s right, their eggs! And this is where this bird sets itself apart from its cousins in the flightless family.
Looking very much like an avocado, an emu egg is a wonder to look at and quite honestly, you won’t believe it is an egg at first glance!
But crack it to see the orange-yellow yolk come tumbling out, and that would be enough to convince the crowd.
But that’s not where the fun ends when it comes to emu eggs! So tag along as we look at everything you need to know about emus and their peculiarly colored eggs.
Emu Egg Size And Appearane
Emu eggs stand out in their appearance, sporting the most delightful dark green color that would put even the greenest of evergreens to shame!
Richly colored in emerald and dark-toned greens, it resembles an avocado both in color as well as shape.
This color actually starts off as a pale green and deepens into its final form with incubation.
The primary reasoning for this coloration becomes pretty apparent if you simply take a look at their surroundings. Their lush green color helps blend right in with the green goodness they inhabit.
As for their dimensions though, they stand right behind their cousins the ostriches in this category as well.
Just like they are the second largest bird, so are their eggs the second largest eggs. Just take a look for yourself!
| Emu’s Egg Weight | 1.0 – 1.4 lbs | 450 – 650 g |
| Emu’s Egg Length | 5.1 inches | 13 cm |
| Emu’s Egg Width | 3.5 inches | 9cm |
Emu Eggs: Number, Incubation, And Hatching
Emus form bonds that last about 5 months during the months of January and December, during which they also go out seeking and defending territories.
Nests are usually built into the ground, in a small excavation lined by leaves, grasses, twigs, and branches, into which the perfectly camouflaged eggs are laid by the female.
The female emu lays about 5 – 15 eggs at a time, after which she usually takes her to leave and moves on to another male.
The incubation period lasts roughly 56 days, just like in most of the ratite family, and is the primary undertaking of the male emu.
The eggs hatch within 2 – 3 days of each other and do so soon after the male stops his incubation, after which the chicks pop right out.
The chicks are pretty active already and have the ability to leave their nest within a few days. Talk about early bloomers!
Emu Eggs: Edible? How Much? Tasty?
The short answer is yes, emu eggs are as edible as any other, and have nothing about them that makes them inedible.
That is, of course, not looking at its appearance which is not the most appetizing. But still, emu eggs are a recent delectable exotic dish loved by many.
It is often consumed soft-scrambled or poached and laid beautifully across a bed of sauteed mushrooms and white sauce.
Emu eggs are also pretty good with protein content, with almost 9 percent being protein.
Where the issue arrives is with its price range, with just one single egg costing anywhere between $35 and $40 in the grocery store up to a hefty $90 dollars from a “proper” breeder or from restaurants.
As much as they may be the craze, it is also unfair to not look at the completely impractical methods you would need to undergo to get the huge thing cooked!
But it seems that everyone who has tried agrees the final product is worth the money and effort, as many describe it as a “rich, and more decadent” experience!
Emu Eggs vs Ostrich Eggs: A Comparison
Looking at the flightless bird family first, it is right we start with the most similar cousin, the ostrich!
Similarly scraggly and fluffy looking, with the characteristic long legs and middle rump, the birds are pretty similar while their eggs most certainly are not.
Ostrich eggs sport a much more classic egg shade, a slightly off-white tone with a smooth glossy texture.
Emu eggs, on the other hand, sit on the other side of the spectrum, with their deep dark shades and speckled texture! Looking at their sizes, you could probably fit a full and a quarter emu egg into an ostrich egg!
| Basis | Emu | Ostrich |
| Length | 5.1 inches | 5.9 inches |
| Width | 3.5 inches | 5.1 inches |
| Weight | 1.4 lbs | 3.1 lbs |
| Protein | 9 percent | 176 g per egg |
Emu Eggs vs Chicken Eggs: A Comparison
Moving right along to the egg we are most familiar with, let us compare emu eggs with chicken eggs!
Chicken eggs, while obviously being much smaller, actually contain more protein than emu eggs, at about 11.9 percent!
Looking purely at sizes though, emu eggs are about eight times larger than the average chicken egg found on our countertops!
Now that is a huge egg if we have ever heard of one!
| Basis | Emu | Chicken |
| Length | 5.1 inches | 2.3 inches |
| Width | 3.5 inches | 1.3 inches |
| Weight | 1.4 lbs | 0.9 lbs |
| Protein | 9 percent | 12 percent |
Emu Eggs vs. Kiwi Eggs: A Comparison
Yet another member of the ratite family, kiwis stand out, particularly when you look at their eggs.
Thought for a long time to be directly connected to emus, these birds were recently studied not to be.
The most curious thing about their eggs is how large the egg’s proportion is to the kiwi’s body.
Kiwi eggs commonly weigh up to a quarter of the female kiwi’s weight! Now that is a huge egg when you compare it to the poor bird that had to push it out. But let us now look at it compared to emu eggs.
| Basis | Emu | Kiwi |
| Length | 5.1 inches | 6 inches |
| Width | 3.5 inches | 5.11 inches |
| Weight | 1.4 lbs | 1.4 lbs |
| Protein | 9 percent | 22g per egg |
In Conclusion
And that is all you need to know about the world’s second-largest egg, their wonderfully brilliant colors, and the vast world of knowledge to know about these things.
We hope you enjoyed this venture into their world, and that you learned something new today!
Thank you for reading!
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