The Wandering Tattler

We saw two of Australia's three species of megapodes in the north Queensland rainforest. The first image shows the immense nest mound (almost 5 feet tall and at least 10 feet in diameter) of a Scrub Fowl, a dark chicken-like bird with bright orange legs that I saw on three occasions but couldn't capture in a decent photograph. The second photograph shows a bush turkey, a species that builds a similar nest mound. These birds use the natural fermentation heat of the composting vegetation in their nests mounds to incubate their eggs. Bush turkeys stick their bare heads and necks into the mound each day to test its temperature, and will turnover or aerate the mound in order to maintain an appropriate incubation temperature.