#megapode

[herpsandbirds]

Australian Brushturkey (Alectura lathami), family Megapodidae, Eastern Australia

Photograph by Jan Wegener

[birdstudies]

October 31, 2022 - Micronesian Megapode (Megapodius laperouse) Found in the Northern Mariana Islands and Palau, these small megapodes live in forests, coconut groves, coastal scrub, and rocky areas. They eat spiders, insects, snails, seeds, small fruit, and other plant foods, foraging on the forest floor, usually in pairs. Depending on the subspecies, they nest in burrows or build mounds. Females dig the burrows in areas heated by the sun or geothermal sources, often near fallen or live trees. Both parents build the mound nests mostly from leaf litter and sand. They are classified as Near Threatened by the IUCN due mostly to habitat loss from sea level rise and forest clearance, human disturbance, and invasive species.

[proton-wobbler]

Australian Brushturkey (Alectura lathami)

"They make huge piles of leaves and branches as nests. Once I saw a solitary male in a wildlife park and the keepers said he was really annoying because he kept re-arranging the leaf litter which made keeping the footpaths clean a huge pain lol!" "Small gardener-dinosaurs! And these guys are just out here existing with zero parental care."

"Despite its name and their superficial similarities, the bird is not closely related to American turkeys, nor to the Australian bustard, which is also known as the bush turkey."

Australian Brushturkey are a megapode found on the Eastern edge of Australia, typically living in rainforests or wet sclerophyll (eucalyptus-heavy) forests- though they've more recently been moving into cities such as Brisbane and Sydney.

As megapodes, the most unique feature of these birds is the way they incubate and "raise" their young- which is to say, they don't raise them at all! Megapodes are a family of birds that create mounds of rotting vegetation for their eggs to incubate within, much like crocodiles and alligators. The males will tirelessly defend their mounds, checking the temperature with their bills and doing their best to attract females to lay her eggs within. This is the only care they give their young, however. Brushturkey eggs are quite large, and their chicks are born precocial, or "fully developed". Unlike other precocial species, like chickens or ducks, megapode babies can fend for themselves within hours of hatching, and don't need parental guidance in order to make it in the world. Which is good news, since mom invests no care in her young and dad is only concerned with keeping his nest mound in perfect condition!

Sources:

Image Source: eBird (Chris Barnes)

[he-who-needs-to-be-silenced]

Instead of doing a school work about writing a short story about an ai generated image I decided I would make a scientifically plausible phoenix

Of course the myth would originate from multiple birds, but in this case the phoenix (Pyrornis phoenix) was a type of megapode originally from Australia but it was accidentally introduced to Europe and then proceeded to thrive (until they were hunted to extinction). The myth of being reborn from the ashes comes from their nest building behaviour, were they will search for fires and after eating burnt animals they will build a large nest of ashes to incubate their eggs. To search more efficiently for fires the phoenix is more built for flight compared to other megapodes. They will also live near firehawks because they are aware that they start fires.

Gonna make more phoenix content let me know if you want me to make more scientifically plausible mythical creachurs

[alovecraft]

THE MEGAPODE!!!!!

[mrmikemichaelmichaels]

Ikepod Megapode Chronograph Less stylised simple edit. #ikepod #Megapode #chronograph #watch #wristwatch #wristwatchcheck https://www.instagram.com/p/ClhYtCorv8R/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[uncharismatic-fauna]

Uncharismatic Fact of the Day

Sea turtles are famous for the perilous way they start their lives, but they're not the only ones that face peril from day one. Australian bushturkey chicks have to dig themselves out of their nest, which is usually 1-1.5 m (3.2-4.9 ft) deep, and are capable of flight only a few hours after emerging! This is an important skill to pick up quick, as most predators find the idea of a defenseless baby bird too good an opportunity to pass up; only 1 in every 200 eggs laid survives to adulthood.

(Image: A tasty snack Australian bushturkey chick (Alectura lathami) by Dr. John Martin)

If you like what I do, consider leaving a tip or buying me a kofi!

[ankh-morpork-times]

2023 will be the Year of the Querulous Megapode!

[travellinghopefully]

Happy New Year

[dimity-lawn]

Toad on the Megapode.

This meme is in honor of you (Yes, You!) for making it through 2023. Good job. Times may have been unpleasant, difficult, or even terrible, but you kept going. Persist!

[mirtadraws]

Happy Hogswatch and all the best in the Year of the Querulous Megapode

[herpsandbirds]

Australian Brushturkey (Alectura lathami), family Megapodidae, order Galliformes, QLD, Australia

Photograph by Dave Arnold

[antiqueanimals]

Illustrated Sketches of Natural History: Consisting of Descriptions and Engravings of Animals. Second Series. 1864.

Internet Archive

[hag-o-hags]

Portrait of the artist, 2024.

bless. the gerblin has been returned to her papa.

also she frew up her entire breakfast on the kitchen floor but IT COULD HAVE BEEN IN MY CAR so i call that a win

[alonglistofbirds]

[769/10,977] Biak Scrubfowl - Megapodius geelvinkianus

Also known as: Biak Megapode

Order: Galliformes Family: Megapodiidae (megapodes)

Photo credit: Lars Petersson via Macaulay Library

[mrmikemichaelmichaels]

Ikepod Megapode Chronograph #ikepod #Megapode #chronograph #watch #wristwatch https://www.instagram.com/p/ClhXW63rKoC/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=