Alectura lathami
Description
The Australian Brush-turkey is a large fowl-like bird that is about 70 cm tall. The males are mostly a dull black colour with a large fan-like tail. Their head and neck are red and bare of feathers, and they have a distinctive bright yellow collar/wattle. Females are similar, but have a smaller wattle.
Distribution
Brush-turkeys are found down the Eastern sea board from Cape York to the Sydney basin.
Habits & Habitat
Brush turkeys live in rain forests and wet open forests, and some dry inland areas. They are not common in the Sydney area, and are mainly found in the fringes of the northern and western suburbs that back onto large areas of bush, such as Ku-ring-gai National Park.
Brush-turkeys can fly, but generally forage by raking their feet across the ground to uncover insects and fallen fruit.
Brush-turkeys make their nests in distinctive mounds of organic matter measuring about 1 metre high and 4 metres across. Up to 50 eggs are incubated in a mound, which is heated by the decomposition of the organic matter. Male brush-turkeys are responsible for maintiainig the temperature of the mound by adding or removing vegetation.
Links and References
Simpson and Day (1999), "Field Guide to the Birds of Australia", Viking
National Parks and Wildlife Service Bird species distribution of Western Sydney