The Big Emu, is one of the more obscure dream time spirits of the sky, because rather than being a constellation or pattern of stars, it is a shape that is found by looking for the "dark" areas in the Milky Way.....
To find the Emu's head, first find the Southern Cross. If you look closely, you will notice a dark patch between the stars in the lower left quarter of the cross.
This is the head of the Emu, now look for the two pointers, these are the two bright stars off to one side of the Cross.... if you follow the dark patches out from the Southern Cross, past the pointers and keep looking for dark areas in the Milky Way, you will soon pick out the huge and dark shape of the Emu in the sky.
The Big Emu, swings around the sky each night, its starting point at dusk, changes as the year goes by, and the seasons change, in this way when the Big Emu's body
reaches a certain angle, the people knew it was then the season to go and find fresh Emu eggs, a rich highly valued food source.
This is illustrated by a stone carving in NSW, of the Big Emu. When the carvings angle on the rock face, matches the Emu in the sky, the harvest may begin!
