Data Zone
Justification of Red List category
This species was formerly found on King Island, Australia, but is now considered Extinct. It was last recorded in 1802, and likely had been exterminated through hunting by 1805.
Population justification
No extant population remains.
Dromaius ater was endemic to King Island in the Bass Strait, Australia (Stattersfield et al. 1998). Numerous skeletal remains have been found, but only one skin exists, collected by Baudin in 1802 and now in Paris (Jouanin 1959). The species' extinction must have followed shortly thereafter (Hume and Walters 2012).
It was reported to prefer the shady margins of lagoons and the shoreline (Marchant and Higgins 1991).
Its extinction was presumably a result of being hunted by sealers for food (Marchant and Higgins 1991).
Text account compilers
Brooks, T., Khwaja, N., Mahood, S., Vine, J.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: King Island Emu Dromaius minor. Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/king-island-emu-dromaius-minor on 23/11/2024.
Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2024) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/search on 23/11/2024.