Australian brushturkey

Australian bush turkey
Male
Female
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Galliformes
Family: Megapodiidae
Genus: Alectura
Latham, 1824
Species:
A. lathami
Binomial name
Alectura lathami
Subspecies
  • A. l. purpureicollis (Le Souef, 1898)
    purple-wattled brushturkey
  • A. l. lathami (J.E. Gray, 1831)
    Australian brushturkey

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.