Stats

Lifespan

15-25 yrs

Size

Medium

Diet

Omnivore

Activity

Diurnal

Social

Pair

Biome

Arid shrubland

Range

Australia

Movement

Walking

Breeding

Egg-laying

Defense

Camouflage

Status

Vulnerable

About

Malleefowl are stocky ground-dwelling Australian birds about the size of domestic chickens. Malleefowl males build large nesting mounds, which they defend fiercely, and then leave the chicks to fend for themselves.

Life cycle

1. 1.
   egg

   A large clutch of eggs sits in a shallow ground scrape, incubated by the hen until the brood hatches together.
2. 2.
   hatchling chick

   A downy chick leaves the nest within hours of hatching and pecks for food alongside the hen.
3. 3.
   juvenile

   A juvenile grows its first body feathers, learns to fly short bursts, and stays in the brood until fledged.
4. 4.
   adult

   Fully grown with adult plumage.

Learn more

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Taxonomy

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Aves

Order

Galliformes

Family

Megapodiidae

Genus

Leipoa

Species

Leipoa ocellata