The Biak Megapode is a dark bird of forests around Cenderawasih Bay. It scratches the forest floor with its large feet to find food.
Its body is sooty grey, with bare skin on the face ranging from red to grey. It has a small rear crest, reddish legs, and a yellowish bill.
Biak Scrubfowl occur in natural forest on limestone terrain, selectively logged woodland and tall, mature regrowth. Field records extend to about 300 metres on Supiori and include logged forest in southern Biak.
A 2023 account assembled the researchers’ observations over many years. In July 1982, birds were sparse but widespread on Supiori. They were repeatedly recorded in selectively logged and tall secondary forest in southern Biak between 1983 and 1997.
They were recorded daily around Biak-Utara Reserve during a January 1997 visit. By contrast, observers found them noticeably harder to locate in southern Biak during the 2010s, documenting a qualitative change across places and periods.
An extinction-risk assessment has not been added yet.
The authors of the 2023 paper attribute the apparent decline in southern Biak principally to hunting, egg collection and forest degradation. Protecting occupied forest and investigating exploitation remain conservation priorities.