"D. stirtoni" had a long neck and stub-like wings, so it was flightless. Its legs were powerful, but it was not a fast runner. The bird's beak was large and immensely powerful, leading early researchers to believe that it was used to shear through tough plant stalks. However, others have argued that the size of the beak suggests that the bird was a carnivore. There were forests and a permanent water supply where the "Dromornis" birds lived, although the climate was unpredictable.