ML602076911

Age

Not specified

Sex

Not specified

Tags

Egg(s); Nest

Media notes

A group of men doing a systematic dig through a portion of the nesting area. They move as a linear front across the area down to the depth eggs are laid. Thus very few eggs will survive undiscovered. A portion of the area is sectioned off with the bamboo and sections harvested at different times for different clans. This could be the foundation of a management protocol, but would have to be done in a way everyone shares the pain equally so all benefit. E.g., setting off a 20% area of each area for no harvest each year. I think Manusians would embrace such a plan- they are well educated and forward thinking partly due to better support for education in Manus Province. But it will take time for someone to work with them and show how it will benefit all. I never got to get the management program started due to dropped funding, but I hope someone has or will do it before the megapodes are extirpated. This was 2005, so possibly it is too late as I write this (2023),

Observation details

See also checklist notes. I was visiting the megapode "rookery" where geothermal heated sands incubate eggs. There were about 40 megapodes in the bit of forest near the nesting area, which is probably an important staging, resting, (mating?) area, Megapode eggs are an important food resource for the people of Lou, but it looked to me that the harvest is not sustainable as it was. Based on the number of people harvesting, how much is harvested at a time, and few shells dug up of hatched birds. They pulse main harvests about every 30 days, which is longer than the incubation time, so probably only a few missed eggs are hatching. Dogs kill hens and probably chicks, cats reported to kill chicks. At the time there was no management plan or regulation of the take other than informal rules by the landowners. But it is seen as a community resource, so hard for any one or a few to really regulate. I don't know if anyone got to help develop a management plan. I was unable to get funds to go back more. One student, Michael Kigl, went back and I have his report somewhere. But the funding for our work was pulled by WCS who said at the time PNG was no longer a priority for them. I do know they came back and started some work in Manus, but mostly I think planting mangroves.

Technical information

Model

Canon PowerShot G3

Focal length

7.2 mm

Flash

Flash did not fire, auto

f-stop

f/4.0

Shutter speed

1/80 sec

Dimensions

2272 pixels x 1704 pixels

Original file size

2.78 MB