Dusky megapode

The dusky megapode (Megapodius freycinet), also known as dusky scrubfowl or common megapode, is a medium-sized, approximately 41 cm (16 in) long, blackish bird with a short pointed crest, bare red facial skin, dark legs, brown irises, and a dark brown and yellow bill. Males and females look similar. This terrestrial bird lives in forests and swamps, including mangroves, in the Maluku and Raja Ampat Islands in Indonesia.

Like other megapodes, the dusky megapode does not sit on its eggs. Instead, it lays them in a special mound made from earth mixed with leaves, sand, gravel, and sticks. These mounds can be as large as 11 m (36 ft) in diameter and nearly 5 m (16 ft) tall. The heat from decomposing material in the mound helps hatch the eggs.

The dusky scrubfowl is considered fairly common in many parts of its home range. It is evaluated as least concern on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, meaning it is not in immediate danger. The specific name honors the French explorer Louis Claude Desaulses de Freycinet, who contributed to early studies of this bird.