[Yew poisoning in Australian emus (Dromaius novaehollandiae, LATHAM)]

Six, four month old, captive bred emus (Dromaius novaehollandiae) were found dead in their pen without any previous indications of illness. Postmortem examination revealed the cause of death to be taxine poisoning after ingestion of leaves and green berries from a Yew bush (Taxus baccata) growing outside the perimeter fencing but encroaching through the wire. After longstanding access to the Yew bush, an unidentified stimulus prompted these young birds to sample this toxic plant. Pathological findings included changes in the lungs, heart, liver, spleen and most parts of the digestive system as would be expected from the quoted sources concerning taxine poisoning in other species. Considering the varied artificial environments in which taxa are kept and the relative infrequency of autopsies carried out on birds, the incidence of taxine poisoning in avian species is considered to be probably much higher than that evidenced by reference to the published literature.