The Maleo ( Macrocephalon maleo )

The Maleo, Macrocephalon maleo is a medium-sized, up to 55cm long, blackish megapode with bare yellow facial skin, reddish-brown iris, reddish-orange beak and rosy salmon below. The crown is ornamented with a black helmet casque. The greyish blue feet has four long sharp claws, separated by a membranous web. Both sexes are similar with slightly smaller and duller female.

The only member in monotypic genus Macrocephalon, the Maleo is endemic to the Indonesian island of Sulawesi. It is found in the tropical lowland and hill forests, but nesting in the open sandy areas, volcanic soils or beaches that can be easily heated by the sun or geothermal for incubation.

The Maleo's egg is large, about five times of domestic chicken's. The female lays and covers each egg in a deep hole in the sand and allow the incubation to take place through solar or volcanic heating. After the egg hatched, the young birds work their own way up through the sand and hide into forests. The young bird is able to fly and totally independent. It has to find foods and defends itself from predators such as lizards, python, wild pigs or cats.

The Maleo is monogamous, and pair stay close to each other all the time. Its diet consists mainly of fruits, seeds, ants, termites, beetles and small invertebrates.

Since 1972, this species has been protected by Indonesian government. Due to ongoing habitat loss, limited range, chick high mortality rates and overhunting in some areas, the Maleo is evaluated as Endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. It is listed on Appendix I of CITES.