Aggressive emu chases cyclists near Australian river

CANBERRA, Australia, Nov. 22 (UPI) -- An Australian cyclist ran into a bit of difficulty with an unusual road hazard -- a territorial emu that refused to let bicycles pass.

Chris Wilson posted a video to Instagram showing a cyclist traveling down a road in a rural area of Canberra, near the Cotter River.

The cyclist turns and travels in the other direction when confronted by a territorial emu that seems intent on preventing bicycles from passing.

Wilson said he filmed the "roadrunner's revenge" video moments after his own tense encounter with the emu.

"I was riding down through the Cotter where the recreational area is and spotted two emus on the side of the road," Wilson told the Canberra Times. "I had never seen any emus outside of captivity so I stopped to turn my bike around and went a bit closer towards them to try and get a photo and one started running for me."

Wilson said he was a short distance away when the emu gave up the pursuit and turned its attention to the second cyclist.

"All I wanted was a happy snap of the emus beside the road. But it was great to see that wildlife you don't tend to see it unless it is in captivity," Wilson said.