Dusky Megapode (Megapodius freycinet) [XC68690]
by Mike Catsis from Halmahera; near Domato (Kali Batu Putih), Indonesia (song)
Dusky Megapode (Megapodius freycinet) [XC533525]
by Teus Luijendijk from Weda, Central Halmahera, North Maluku, Indonesia (song)
Subspecies
Megapodius freycinet (Sibley and Monroe 1990, 1993) has been split into Dusky Scrubfowl (Megapodius freycinet) and Biak Scrubfowl (Megapodius geelvinkianus) following Jones et al. (1995).
Subspecies geelvinkianus may merit treatment as full species. Birds of northern Moluccas sometimes awarded separate subspecies, quoyii. Said to hybridize with Orange-footed Scrubfowl (Megapodius reinwardt) on some islands in Geelvink Bay (where Orange-footed Scrubfowl (Megapodius reinwardt) apparently absent) and also in southern Moluccas (where Dusky Scrubfowl (Megapodius freycinet) not known to occur).
The following 6 subspecies are recognised:
freycinet Gaimard, 1823 - Northern Moluccas, western Papuan Is.
geelvinkianus A. B. Meyer, 1874 - Islands in Geelvink Bay (northern New Guinea). Considered by some authors to be a distinct species, Biak Scrubfowl (Megapodius geelvinkianus).
quoyii Gray, GR, 1862 - North Moluccas.
oustaleti Roselaar, 1994 - Extreme north-western New Guinea (western Vogelkop Peninsula) and adjacent islands, including Batanta, Salawati, and associated smaller islands.
forsteni Gray, GR, 1847 - Seram and nearby islands. Considered by some authors to be a distinct species, Forsten's Scrubfowl (Megapodius forstenii). Considered by some authors to be a subspecies of Forsten's Scrubfowl (Megapodius forstenii).
buruensis Stresemann, 1914 - Southern Moluccas, on Buru. Considered by some authors to be a subspecies of Orange-footed Scrubfowl (Megapodius reinwardt). Considered by some authors to be a subspecies of Forsten's Scrubfowl (Megapodius forstenii).
BirdLife International Species Factsheet