Markham Valley

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Markham Valley is a geographical area in New Guinea. It is described as "Flatter than a pancake for miles and miles in all directions, until it runs into the mountains that surround it on three sides" and "Always hot, and usually bone dry." The valley is about 4-5 km wide and more than 100 km long. It is highly fertile and is used for sugar-cane, subsistence and oil-palm farming. The Highlands Highway runs through the valley. The Markham River runs through the valley. According to one visitor, about once a year, the local Papua New Guineans burn the tinder dry grass.The valley has numerous fires throughout the dry season and according to the Modis-Nasa website of fire scars these start in April, peak in June and cease by September. An average of 16 per month were recorded in the 2007 dry season. They are startwed by local boys and men hunting ground possums (Cuscus). Numerous birds of prey are sttracted to these fires - mainly Black Kites but also the elusive and rare Papuan Harrier. This species also nests in this valley and the only two nest known from here were both destroyed by fire in 2007.