Demon Duck of Doom

Long ago, far back in the mists of time, kangaroos weren’t cute, koalas weren’t cuddly, and there existed a beast so terrible, it has been called the Demon Duck of Doom.

12 million years ago the giant thunder bird Bullockornis roamed the wilds of Australia. It shared its territory with fanged kangaroos that were capable of ripping off the top of your head and feasting on your innards. These megafauna died out millions of years ago, but fossils of new species are being discovered all of the time.

In the most recent news, a team of paleontologists have uncovered skeletons of a large number of these ‘thunder birds’ at a remote location in the Northern Territory. These birds belonged to the family Dromornithidae, the largest of which grew to over nine feet tall and may have been the largest bird that ever lived on the planet.

Why is it called the Demon Duck of Doom? Because it’s closest living relatives seem to be waterfowl. Donald Duck with an attitude. Daffy on steroids. The beak, according to Steve Wroe, a paleontologist at the University of Sydney, is obviously made to “scissor out chunks of flesh.”

One reason these extinct birds hold so much fascination for scientists, aside from the obvious paleontological interest, is that all of Australia’s large animals, including meat-eating kangaroos and fanged possums, died out during a specific period in history, and nobody is quite sure why. Some theorize that climate changes killed them all, and some blame human incursion and hunting.

Whatever the reason, many present-day inhabitants of Australia can probably sleep a little easier at night, knowing they aren’t going to be eaten by a large wombat anytime soon.