In the annals of bizarre military history, few episodes are as strangely comical as the Great Emu War of 1932. Yes, this really happened: the Australian government sent soldiers armed with machine guns to fight thousands of flightless birds… and the birds won.

After World War I, many Australian veterans were given land to farm in Western Australia. But their fields were soon overrun by an unexpected enemy: 20,000 emus migrating inland in search of food. The massive birds trampled fences, destroyed crops, and made life miserable for the farmers.

Desperate, the farmers appealed to the government — and the government responded with soldiers. Armed with two Lewis machine guns and 10,000 rounds of ammo, the military launched Operation: Emu War in November 1932.

The result? Total disaster.

The emus proved elusive, agile, and oddly tactical. They scattered into small groups, ran faster than the soldiers expected, and were incredibly hard to kill. In one reported ambush, the soldiers fired over 2,500 rounds… and killed fewer than 50 birds.

After several failed missions, mechanical failures, and international ridicule, the operation was called off. The emus had won. The soldiers returned home — bruised in pride, if not in body.

Though it sounds like a parody, the Emu War was real and is still cited as one of the most absurd defeats in military history. To this day, the emu remains on Australia's coat of arms — perhaps as a cheeky reminder.