The Waigeo brushturkey or Bruijn's brushturkey, is a large brownish-black megapode with a bare red facial skin, red comb, maroon rump, and chestnut brown below. There are two elongated red wattles on the back of the head and a long wattle on the foredeck. Both sexes are similar. The female has a smaller comb and no wattles.
Region
Raja Ampat Islands
Typical Environment
Found primarily in lowland and hill forests of Waigeo Island, including secondary growth and forest edges. It favors dense understory and leaf-littered floors where it forages by scratching. Birds are often near suitable mound-building sites with ample leaf litter and sandy or well-drained soils. It may occur near coastal scrub and along ridges but avoids heavily settled areas.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 900 m
Climate Zone
Tropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
This megapode incubates its eggs in large mounds of decaying vegetation, letting microbial heat do the work instead of brooding. Males meticulously tend the mound, adding or removing material to regulate temperature. The eggs are large and yolk-rich, and the chicks hatch fully feathered and independent. It is shy and elusive, largely confined to remote forests on Waigeo Island.
Temperament
shy and elusive
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats; reluctant flier
Social Behavior
Typically seen singly or in pairs, sometimes in small loose groups around mound sites. Males build and maintain large incubation mounds and may mate with multiple females. Females visit to lay eggs, after which both adults provide no direct care to chicks. Chicks disperse quickly after hatching.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
Vocalizations include low booming calls, grunts, and clucking notes, often given at dawn or near mound sites. Calls carry through dense forest and serve in territory advertisement and mate attraction.
