Malleefowl

The sand of the scrubland echoes with silence- until it shatters.

The mound is scratched into a volcano, purely for a home and new life.

A fowl retreats from the volcano to its favorite mallee shrubs, earning its title, the malleefowl.

Its feathers rustle as it steps backward, afraid of the larger figure of myself emerging. 

As the cool of night settles in, the fowl floats up to its partner to introduce them to the now finished, home of a mound.