Micronesian Megapode
Encyclopedia
The Micronesian Megapode or Micronesian Scrubfowl, Megapodius laperouse, is an endangered megapode which inhabits islands of the Western Pacific Ocean.
It is a 38 cm. Medium-sized, dark megapode with paler head. Mostly brownish-black with short pale grey crest. Yellow bill, red facial skin showing through thin feathers. Unusually large, dingy yellow legs and feet. Similar spp. Could be confused with dark morphs of Red Junglefowl Gallus gallus (or feral domestic stock). .
It's call is a loud "keek", song often a duet with one bird beginning a rising and accelerating "keek-keek-keek-keek"- etc. culminating in a loud "kee-keer-kew" (Palau) or "keek-keer-keet" (Marianas), the other answering with a rising cackle that slows near the end. .
The Micronesian Scrubfowl (Megapodius laperouse) is named after The French explorer Jean-François de Galaup, comte de Lapérouse.
, Agrihan
, Pagan
, Aguijan
and Alamagan
, and is extinct on Saipan
, Tinian
, Rota
and Guam
. Small groups of the birds frequent the thickets and scrublands of low outlying islands in the region; however, when present on larger islands, they may also be found inland on higher ground.
Its habitat is thick forest and it is omnivorous, eating a large variety of foods from the forest floor.
The Micronesian Scrubfowl and some other megapodes are the only birds known to incubate their eggs using volcanic heat.
comes in, the females make large mounds of debris in which to lay their eggs. Some individual females will lay their eggs togeather in the same mound. However the females do not use the same mound more than once and are swapped with different females. When the eggs hatch after one to two months later, the chicks will feed on grass shoots and insects.
The introduction
of dogs, cats, pigs, and rats is believed to have led to the decline of this species throughout most of the islands. Along with increased predation, during the Japanese occupation of the islands of Saipan and Tinian, most of the vegetation of both islands was burnt and replaced by large sugar cane farms.
It is estimated that only 2000–2500 of the species remain. It can be found in the island nation of Palau
, and undisturbed islands of the Northern Marianas chain, with several hundred on Sarigan
. Reportedly, a small population has recently been reintroduced on Saipan
.
The bird appears on the 2010 IUCN Red List Category (as evaluated by BirdLife International - the official Red List Authority for birds for IUCN). The species qualifies as "Endangered" because it has a very small range, restricted to isolated undisturbed offshore islets, with few birds elsewhere. Given the multiple threats across its range, it is likely to be suffering from a continuing decline.
It seems that the only way for the species to be safe is to protect a few small islands and release a small population of megapodes there. That way, a safe population is secured. On the larger and higher islands, an increase of people and introduced pests will sooner or later destroy any megapode populations.
. It is rare, localised and in danger of disappearing.
Description
The Micronesian Megapode is a stocky medium-sized bird that is mostly dark brownish-black in appearance. Its head is paler than its body, and it has a pale grey crest, a yellow bill, and large dull-yellow legs and feet.It is a 38 cm. Medium-sized, dark megapode with paler head. Mostly brownish-black with short pale grey crest. Yellow bill, red facial skin showing through thin feathers. Unusually large, dingy yellow legs and feet. Similar spp. Could be confused with dark morphs of Red Junglefowl Gallus gallus (or feral domestic stock). .
It's call is a loud "keek", song often a duet with one bird beginning a rising and accelerating "keek-keek-keek-keek"- etc. culminating in a loud "kee-keer-kew" (Palau) or "keek-keer-keet" (Marianas), the other answering with a rising cackle that slows near the end. .
The Micronesian Scrubfowl (Megapodius laperouse) is named after The French explorer Jean-François de Galaup, comte de Lapérouse.
Habitat
The bird is still to be found in the Marianas. It was previously recorded on the islands of AsuncionAsuncion Island
Asuncion is the third northernmost independent island in the Northern Mariana Islands chain at .It is located in the far northern part of the Mariana arc of volcanic islands, situated northwest of Agrihan and southeast of the Maug Islands; the island of Pagan lies to the southwest...
, Agrihan
Agrihan
Agrihan is a stratovolcano which forms an island in the Northern Mariana Islands in the Pacific Ocean. The entire island is a massive volcano which rises over from the ocean floor, and is the fifth largest in the Marianas volcanic arc. At , its summit is the highest point in Micronesia...
, Pagan
Pagan Island
Pagan is an island of the Northern Mariana Islands chain,located at , approximately 320 kilometers northof Saipan.Pagan has an area of 47.23 km² , making it the fourth largest island of the Northern Marianas, and consists of two stratovolcanoes joined by a narrow strip of land.The...
, Aguijan
Aguijan
Aguijan is a small bean-shaped coralline island in the Northern Mariana Islands chain situated southwest of Tinian, from which it is separated by the Tinian Channel. It is only 7.09 km² in size and is nicknamed Goat Island due to the large number of feral goats present there...
and Alamagan
Alamagan
The Northern Marianas island of Alamagan is located north from Saipan and is 11.12 km² in area. The island's volcano has a large caldera at the summit. The volcano last erupted around 870 AD, with an error bar of 100 years. It involved pyroclastic flows, and had a VEI of 4...
, and is extinct on Saipan
Saipan
Saipan is the largest island of the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , a chain of 15 tropical islands belonging to the Marianas archipelago in the western Pacific Ocean with a total area of . The 2000 census population was 62,392...
, Tinian
Tinian
Tinian is one of the three principal islands of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.-Geography:Tinian is about 5 miles southwest of its sister island, Saipan, from which it is separated by the Saipan Channel. It has a land area of 39 sq.mi....
, Rota
Rota (island)
Rota also known as the "peaceful island", is the southernmost island of the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and the second southernmost of the Marianas Archipelago. It lies approximately 40 miles north-northeast of the United States territory of Guam...
and Guam
Guam
Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...
. Small groups of the birds frequent the thickets and scrublands of low outlying islands in the region; however, when present on larger islands, they may also be found inland on higher ground.
Its habitat is thick forest and it is omnivorous, eating a large variety of foods from the forest floor.
Behavior
Often shy and secretive, but becomes relatively tame on inhabited islands where protected from disturbance. Visits nesting mounds several times a day. The birds are known to creep around in the shadows of small trees and are not capable of flying for long distances. However they are accomplished runners and would be very hard to catch.The Micronesian Scrubfowl and some other megapodes are the only birds known to incubate their eggs using volcanic heat.
Breeding
During the breeding season, just after the southeast monsoonMonsoon
Monsoon is traditionally defined as a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation, but is now used to describe seasonal changes in atmospheric circulation and precipitation associated with the asymmetric heating of land and sea...
comes in, the females make large mounds of debris in which to lay their eggs. Some individual females will lay their eggs togeather in the same mound. However the females do not use the same mound more than once and are swapped with different females. When the eggs hatch after one to two months later, the chicks will feed on grass shoots and insects.
Conservation
The species is currently classified as endangered because it has a very small range, restricted to isolated undisturbed offshore islets. Megapodius laperouse occurs on Palau and the Northern Mariana Islands (to USA), and is extirpated from Guam (to USA)The introduction
Introduced species
An introduced species — or neozoon, alien, exotic, non-indigenous, or non-native species, or simply an introduction, is a species living outside its indigenous or native distributional range, and has arrived in an ecosystem or plant community by human activity, either deliberate or accidental...
of dogs, cats, pigs, and rats is believed to have led to the decline of this species throughout most of the islands. Along with increased predation, during the Japanese occupation of the islands of Saipan and Tinian, most of the vegetation of both islands was burnt and replaced by large sugar cane farms.
It is estimated that only 2000–2500 of the species remain. It can be found in the island nation of Palau
Palau
Palau , officially the Republic of Palau , is an island nation in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Philippines and south of Tokyo. In 1978, after three decades as being part of the United Nations trusteeship, Palau chose independence instead of becoming part of the Federated States of Micronesia, a...
, and undisturbed islands of the Northern Marianas chain, with several hundred on Sarigan
Sarigan
Sarigan is a small island in the Northern Mariana Island chain. It is the result of a Holocene Era stratovolcano with no known historic eruptions, although a swarm of volcano-tectonic earthquakes took place here in the summer of 2005....
. Reportedly, a small population has recently been reintroduced on Saipan
Saipan
Saipan is the largest island of the United States Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands , a chain of 15 tropical islands belonging to the Marianas archipelago in the western Pacific Ocean with a total area of . The 2000 census population was 62,392...
.
The bird appears on the 2010 IUCN Red List Category (as evaluated by BirdLife International - the official Red List Authority for birds for IUCN). The species qualifies as "Endangered" because it has a very small range, restricted to isolated undisturbed offshore islets, with few birds elsewhere. Given the multiple threats across its range, it is likely to be suffering from a continuing decline.
It seems that the only way for the species to be safe is to protect a few small islands and release a small population of megapodes there. That way, a safe population is secured. On the larger and higher islands, an increase of people and introduced pests will sooner or later destroy any megapode populations.
Subspecies
The Marianas Island Megapode or Megapodius laperouse laperouse, is the nominate subspecies of the Micronesian Megapode found in the Mariana IslandsMariana Islands
The Mariana Islands are an arc-shaped archipelago made up by the summits of 15 volcanic mountains in the north-western Pacific Ocean between the 12th and 21st parallels north and along the 145th meridian east...
. It is rare, localised and in danger of disappearing.