Melanesian Megapodes’ eggs

The critical resource for the local villagers is the egg of the Melanesian Megapode, a chicken sized bird with a chicken sized egg which presumably provides them with a significant amount of their daily requirement for protein. The Megapode lays its eggs deep in the ground having dug a large hole and then filled it in again overnight. The villagers have to scoop out the earth with their bare hands to a depth of about five feet in order to retrieve the eggs. Bird watching in this part of the forest is highly dangerous as a result of lots of large five foot deep holes and tree roots all over the place. Photographing a Megapode should be easy because they are fairly common but the uneven terrain actually makes it very difficult so a photo of the eggs is as good as it gets, I’m afraid.