Runaway emu captured in Tainan, handed over to authorities by owner

Tainan, March 24 (CNA) A pet emu was sighted walking along a public thoroughfare, without its owner, on an island off the coast of Tainan in southern Taiwan early Saturday, before later confirmation this was the second time the bird escaped from its enclosure in Anping District over the past two years.

The emu was eventually captured by personnel dispatched by the Tainan City Agricultural Bureau after it received reports of the incident from the owner and members of the public, who saw the escaped bird on Yuguang Island, officials with the bureau said Sunday.

The bird was handed over to a company contracted by the bureau to care for it after the owner asked for assistance, expressing concern that the bird has now escaped twice in two years.

According to Japanese national Takao Nozaki, a long term Tainan resident who saw the emu on Yuguang Island and spoke with CNA Sunday, he was startled to see such a big flightless bird strolling down Yuguang Road, while on a morning run.

Meanwhile, Yuguang ward chief Lin Ning-feng (林寧峰) said the owner asked him to call the agricultural bureau for help given that the emu could escape again and pose a risk to traffic and public safety,

The owner no longer wants to look after the bird and asked the bureau to find someone willing to house it, Lin said.

Emus are endemic to Australia and are the second largest land bird next to the ostrich.

With its three-toed legs, the flightless emu can reach a top running speed of 50 kilometers an hour.