First ever malleefowl chick hatches at Monarto Safari Park

Monarto Safari Park has celebrated the first-ever successful hatching of a malleefowl chick, marking a major milestone for the vulnerable Australian species.

The chick hatched in December to Monarto Safari Park’s resident malleefowl pair, aged 14 and 15, who have been together for more than a decade.

Natives keeper Cristy said the team was stunned when they discovered the tiny hatchling.

“We arrived to find what looked initially like a little quail, and it was actually a malleefowl chick sitting on our keeper pathway,” she said.

Known for their enormous nesting mounds and elusive behaviour, malleefowl are one of Australia’s most unique native birds.

Listed as vulnerable in South Australia, the species faces threats including habitat fragmentation, land clearing and introduced predators.

Unlike many bird species, malleefowl chicks are completely independent from the moment they hatch.

After digging themselves out of the mound, a process which can take more than 10 hours, the chicks immediately begin searching for food and avoiding predators on their own.

“So they’re precocial – that means that the chick hatches from the mound, has to emerge itself,” Cristy said.

“This might take over 10 hours, and then they’re fully independent – no parenting assistance from mum or dad.”

Using remote camera footage, the Monarto Safari Park team monitored the chick closely, observing it pecking and scratching for food and roosting safely off the ground within days of hatching.

The successful hatch is believed to have been supported by ideal environmental conditions inside the breeding mound, where decomposing leaf litter generates natural warmth for the eggs.

“This time around we seem to have had the right kind of conditions for the leaf litter inside that the birds fill up with the laid eggs, and then that decomposes to help keep the eggs warm,” Cristy said.

The juvenile malleefowl has since moved into a larger habitat near the adult pair and undergone health checks and genetic testing.

Often heard before they are seen, malleefowl are shy, ground-dwelling birds known for their distinctive booming calls and oversized feet used for digging and mound-building.

Monarto Safari Park hopes the successful hatch will be the first of many for the species in years to come.

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