Alectura lathami
Silhouette: Jorgo Ristevski · PhyloPic
In 3 days <5% in a week ~10%
The Australian brushturkey, Australian brush-turkey, or gweela (Alectura lathami), also commonly called the bush turkey, scrub turkey, or just brushturkey, is a large mound-building bird of the family Megapodiidae. It is found in eastern Australia, ranging from Far North Queensland to the south coast of New South Wales, and has also been introduced to Kangaroo Island in South Australia. It is the largest living member of the Megapodiidae and one of three species native to Australia.
Despite its name and superficial resemblance to other birds, the Australian brushturkey is not closely related to the American turkey or the Australian bustard (which is also known locally as the bush turkey in central Australia). Its closest relatives are the wattled brushturkey, Waigeo brushturkey, and malleefowl.
The range of the Australian brushturkey extends from the top of Cape York to approximately the area around Wollongong. The Australian brushturkey inhabits rainforests and wet sclerophyll forests, as well as drier scrubs and open areas. It lives in both mountainous and lowland areas. In the northern part of its range, the Australian brushturkey is most common at... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lamington National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Noosa National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 3 | Springbrook National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 4 | Daintree National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 5 | Royal National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 6 | Blue Mountains National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Basel Zoo | 🇨🇭 Switzerland | |
| 2 | Australia Zoo | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 3 | Healesville Sanctuary | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 4 | Fort Worth Zoo | 🇺🇸 United States | |
| 5 | Taronga Zoo | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 6 | Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 7 | Ueno Zoo | 🇯🇵 Japan | |
| 8 | Billabong Sanctuary | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 9 | Ipswich Nature Centre | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 10 | Wild Life Sydney | 🇦🇺 Australia |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report an Australian Brush-turkey sighting in Royal National Park on a given day, based on 61 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 130th most-seen of the 178 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, and over a week to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.
Any time of year
In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report an Australian Brush-turkey in Royal National Park on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Australian Brush-turkey sightings with a recorded time, and nearly all of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
5th of 6
Of the 6 parks where we can rate Australian Brush-turkey sightings, Royal National Park ranks 5th at under 5%. The best odds are in Lamington National Park (Australia, about 80%), Noosa National Park (Australia, about 60%) and Springbrook National Park (Australia, about 40%). All parks ranked.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Australian Brush-turkey is recorded against all the birds logged in Royal National Park (61 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
