Facts about Malleefowl
Each egg of the Malleefowl weighs about 10% of the female's body weight, and over a season it is common for her to lay 250% of her own weight. They usually fly only to escape danger or reach a tree to roost in. Within an hour of hatching its chick will be able to run reasonably well; it can flutter for a short distance and run very fast within two hours, and despite not having yet grown tail feathers, it can fly strongly within a day. Malleefowl are shy, wary, solitary birds. It is distantly related to the domestic chicken. It is about the size of a domestic chicken. They are seldom seen as they freeze if disturbed, relying on their intricately patterned plumage to render them invisible, or else fade silently and rapidly into the undergrowth (flying away only if surprised or chased). The female Malleefowl lays a clutch of anywhere from two or three to over 30 large, thin-shelled eggs, mostly about 15; usually about a week apart. Interestingly, their incubation time depends on temperature and can be anywhere between about 50 and almost 100 days. Their hatchlings use their strong feet to break out of the egg, then lie on their backs and scratch their way to the surface, struggling hard for five or ten minutes to gain 3 to 15cm at a time, and then resting for an hour or so before starting again. It can take anywhere between 2 to 15 hours for them to reach the surface. Their chicks pop out of the nesting material with little or no warning with, eyes and beaks tightly closed, then immediately take a deep breath and open their eyes, before freezing motionless for as long as 20 minutes. |
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