The skeleton of one of the largest birds that ever lived is now part of the Burke Museum collections. The museum acquired a cast of the fossil bird, known as Dromornis stirtoni in 2005, and it is the first one ever displayed in the United States.

Over nine feet tall, Dromornis stirtoni roamed Central Australia more than 8 million years ago. Mihirungs, the common name for this group of extinct birds, is an Aboriginal word meaning "giant emu". Mihirungs were a unique group of Australian flightless birds also known as “thunderbirds” and were derived from early waterfowl (ducks, geese, and swans). The last of their kind became extinct about 30,000 years ago. This Dromornis cast, mounted in a dramatic running posture, is a gift to the Burke Museum from Hugh Ferguson.