Papuan Frogmouth

Special permission is required to visit the Pacific Adventist University near Port Moresby. It is well worth a visit however because it has a good selection of unusual birds not least of which is this Papuan Frogmouth. This is a very large bird some two foot long which roosts during the day and hunts for prey primarily at dawn and dusk. Its cryptic plumage means that it is difficult to find and we were fortunate to be shown the roost site which was in the garden of some of the local residents. Finding the bird was still difficult as it appears to be just another branch of the tree.