An Aerial Survey of Nests of Malleefowl Leipoa ocellata Gould (Megapodidae) in Central New South Wales

Abstract

Malleefowl nests were surveyed by air, in six breeding seasons, in Round Hill Nature Reserve in central New South Wales. A technique for marking the nests from a helicopter so that they can be easily relocated was used. In an area of 20 800 ha, a total of 19 1 old nests were marked, only three nests being used for breeding in 1979-80. Correction factors from a ground survey show that about 43% of the nests present were found in 22 days aerial survey. The results show a very low population of malleefowl on Round Hill Nature Reserve and suggest a decline in the population in the last few decades.