The Population Study of Maleo Bird (Macrocephalon maleo) in The Nesting Ground of Saluki Village, Lore Lindu National Park

Abstract

Sulawesi Island is an island that has a diversity of flora and fauna, some of which are endemic animals. One of the protected endemic fauna species is the maleo bird. Maleo was designated as a protected animal because the number of populations in the wild was decreasing, and its conservation status was in the endangered category. Concrete steps that could be taken to increase the maleo population were through various activities, including conducting ongoing and periodic studies of the maleo population. In particular, this study aims to examine the current population of the maleo bird in the nesting ground of Saluki Village, Lore Lindu National Park. In this study, the estimation of maleo population density uses two approaches. The first approach was direct observation of the maleo population outside the nesting habitat using the transect method. The second approach was using the active nest count approach at nesting sites. Based on the results, it was found that in the egg-laying locations, there were 32 active nests and 31 inactive nests. Based on these results, the maleo population density in the egg-laying locations was 29.7 individuals/Ha. While outside the egg-laying habitat, there were eight maleo individuals consisting of four juvenile individuals and four young adults (sub-adults). These results showed that the population density outside the egg-laying habitat was 1.7 individuals/Ha. Four maleo predators were found at the study site, namely Varanus salvator, Spilornis rufipectus, Ictinaetus malayensis and Falco sp. In addition, there was one type of potential maleo predator, Macaca tongkeana, with as many as seven individuals. Two potential factors could disturb the maleo population: the laying location factor and the dense undergrowth factor.