Adults: Skin of head and neck bare and red, sparsely covered with black hair-like feathers. Skin at base of neck yellow and flared into yellow wattles. Upper parts, wings and tail, dull black. Breast, brown-black. Belly, brown-black. Undertail, dull black. Eye, brown to white. Bill, black. Feet, toes, dusky-yellow.
Other Names (World)
Australian Brush-turkey, Scrub Turkey, Brush Turkey, Wild Turkey, Barnard's Purple-pouched Brush-turkey, Barnard's Yellow-pouched Brush-turkey, Pouched Talegallus, Wattled Talegallus, Australian Brushturkey
Eastern Australia from Cape York south to the Hawkesbury River and the Illawarra district, NSW. There is also an introduced population on Kangaroo Island.
 
Rarity Status
Currently this species is not classified as a rarity in this country OR information has not been updated.
Population
Estimated population is 100,000 (2010).
Australian Brushturkey (Alectura lathami) [XC517534]
by James Lambert from Black Mountain Road, Kuranda, Australia (call)
Australian Brushturkey (Alectura lathami) [XC517533]
by Marc Anderson from Black Mountain Road, Kuranda, Australia (call)
Breeding Season (Guide)
July - April but usually August - mid February.
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Nest
A terrestrial mound of decomposing leaf litter and soil 4 - 6 m in diameter and 1 - 1.5 meters high.
Eggs (Guide)
Usually 18 - 24; white; long-oval; 92 x 64 mm. Incubation: about 50 days.
Young
Precocial, nidifugous.
Subspecies
The following 2 subspecies are recognised:
lathami Gray, 1831 - Central and southern Queensland, north-eastern New South Wales.
purpureicollis (Le Souef, 1898) - Cape York Peninsula, with purple-white ruff of wattles.
Similar Species
Orange-footed Scrubfowl (Megapodius reinwardt) which has a dark feathered head / crest and orange legs.
References
See References.
The Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Pizzey, G., and Knight, E., 1997, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 19691 5
Field Guide to Australian Birds Morecombe, M., 2000, Steve Parish Publishing Pty Ltd. ISBN 1 876282 10 X
Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Simpson, K., and Day, N., 1999, 6th Edition, Viking ISBN 0 670 87918 5
Reader's Digest Complete Book of Australian Birds 1988, 2nd Edition, Reader's Digest ISBN 0 949819 99 9
What Bird is That? 1984, Revised Edition, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 14846 5
Handbook of Australian, New Zealand & Antarctic Birds 1990 - , Oxford University Press, Melbourne ISBN 0 19 553244 9
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