Bornean peacock-pheasant

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Bornean peacock-pheasant
Polyplectron schleiermacheri -Jurong Bird Park, Singapore-8a.jpg
CITES Appendix II (CITES) [2]
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Galliformes
Family: Phasianidae
Genus: Polyplectron
Species:
P. schleiermacheri
Binomial name
Polyplectron schleiermacheri
Synonyms

Polyplectron malacense schleiermacheri

The Bornean peacock-pheasant (Polyplectron schleiermacheri) is a medium-sized pheasant. It is probably the rarest and certainly the least known of all peacock-pheasants. This elusive bird is endemic to lowland forests of Borneo. [3]

Contents

Description

The pheasant is up to 50 cm long, rufous brown and black spotted, with an elongated crest and nape feathers, black below and bare red skin around bluish iris eye. The breast sides are metallic blue-green, bordering the white throat and central upper breast. Its twenty-two tail feathers are decorated with large blue-green ocelli, which may be spread fan-like in display. The female is smaller and duller brown than the male. It has a brown iris and no spurs on its feet.

Taxonomy

Together with the phenotypically similar Malayan peacock-pheasant and Palawan peacock-pheasant it represents a basal group in its genus; their radiation probably took place during the Pliocene [4] [5] Being very poorly known, the Bornean peacock-pheasant was long considered to be a subspecies of the Malayan peacock-pheasant, but the two species are well-isolated geographically. The highly specialised anterior breast and upper neck plumage of male Bornean peacock-pheasant males are quite distinctive. Females of the two species are more difficult to distinguish. The rectrices of the Bornean species are morphologically and patterned intermediate between Palawan and Malayan peacock-pheasants.

Status and conservation

Because of ongoing habitat loss, small population size, and limited range, the Bornean peacock-pheasant is evaluated as Endangered on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. It is listed on Appendix II of CITES.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pheasant</span> Bird in family Phasianidae

Pheasants are birds of several genera within the family Phasianidae in the order Galliformes. Although they can be found all over the world in introduced populations, the pheasant genera native range is restricted to Eurasia. The classification "pheasant" is paraphyletic, as birds referred to as pheasants are included within both the subfamilies Phasianinae and Pavoninae, and in many cases are more closely related to smaller phasianids, grouse, and turkey than to other pheasants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Palawan peacock-pheasant</span> Species of bird

The Palawan peacock-pheasant is a medium-sized bird in the family Phasianidae.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bulwer's pheasant</span> Species of bird

Bulwer's pheasant, also known as Bulwer's wattled pheasant, the wattled pheasant or the white-tailed wattled pheasant, is a Southeast Asian bird in the family Phasianidae endemic to the forests of Borneo. It is currently listed as Vulnerable by the IUCN.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great argus</span> Species of pheasant

The great argus is a species of pheasant from Southeast Asia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Peacock-pheasant</span> Genus of birds

The peacock-pheasants are a bird genus, Polyplectron, of the family Phasianidae, consisting of eight species. They are colored inconspicuously, relying on heavily on crypsis to avoid detection. When threatened, peacock-pheasants will alter their shapes using specialised plumage that when expanded reveals numerous iridescent orbs. The birds also vibrate their plume quills further accentuating their aposematism. Peacock-pheasants exhibit well developed metatarsal spurs. Older individuals may have multiple spurs on each leg. These kicking thorns are used in self-defense.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Malayan peacock-pheasant</span> Species of bird

The Malayan peacock-pheasant also known as crested peacock-pheasant or Malaysian peacock-pheasant, is a medium-sized pheasant of the galliform family Phasianidae. The closely related Bornean peacock-pheasant was formerly included here as a subspecies, but as understood today, P. malacense is monotypic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bronze-tailed peacock-pheasant</span> Species of bird

The bronze-tailed peacock-pheasant is also known as the Sumatran peacock-pheasant. It is an Indonesian bird.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mountain peacock-pheasant</span> Species of bird

The mountain peacock-pheasant, also known as Rothschild's peacock-pheasant or mirror pheasant, is a medium-sized, up to 65 cm long, blackish brown pheasant with small ocelli and long graduated tail feathers. Both sexes are similar. The male has metallic blue ocelli on upperparts, green ocelli on tail of twenty feathers and two spurs on legs. Female has black ocelli on upperparts, unspurred legs and tail of eighteen feathers. The female is smaller and duller than male.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Germain's peacock-pheasant</span> Species of bird

Germain's peacock-pheasant is a pheasant that is endemic to Indochina. The name commemorates the French colonial army's veterinary surgeon Louis Rodolphe Germain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bornean crested fireback</span> Species of bird

The Bornean crested fireback is a medium-sized forest pheasant from Borneo and the Bangka Belitung Islands. It is the type species of the genus Lophura. Prior to 2023, it was referred to as simply the crested fireback as the Malayan crested fireback was lumped with this species, though both have since been split.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Grey peacock-pheasant</span> Species of bird

The gray peacock-pheasant, also known as Burmese peacock-pheasant, is a large Asian member of the order Galliformes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red-breasted partridge</span> Species of bird

The red-breasted partridge, also known as the Bornean hill-partridge, is a species of bird in the family Phasianidae. It is endemic to hill and montane forest in Borneo, preferring bamboos and thickets. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has assessed it as a least-concern species.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crimson-headed partridge</span> Species of bird

The crimson-headed partridge is a species of bird in the pheasant, partridge, and francolin family Phasianidae. Described by the British ornithologist Richard Bowdler Sharpe in 1879, it is the only species in the genus Haematortyx. It is endemic to Borneo, where it inhabits lower montane forest in the northern and central parts of the island. It is mainly found at elevations of 1,000–1,700 m (3,300–5,600 ft), but can be seen as low as 185 m (607 ft) and as high as 3,050 m (10,010 ft). Adult males have a striking appearance, with a dark blackish body and crimson red heads, necks, breasts, and undertail coverts. Females have a similar pattern, but with duller brownish-black colouration, orangish-red heads and breasts, and a brownish-black bill instead of a yellowish one. Juveniles are duller and have the crimson restricted to the top of the head.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crestless fireback</span> Species of bird

The crestless firebacks are a group of two species of bird in the family Phasianidae. They are found in Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore. Their natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist lowland forests. They are threatened by habitat destruction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black-sided flowerpecker</span> Species of bird

The black-sided flowerpecker, also known as the Bornean flowerpecker, is a species of bird in the family Dicaeidae. It is endemic to the island of Borneo, where it is found in the mountains, primarily above 1,000 m (3,300 ft) in elevation. The species is sexually dimorphic. The male has glossy blue-black upperparts, with a scarlet throat and breast, a dark grey upper belly, olive flanks, a white lower belly, and a buffy vent and undertail coverts. The female is olive-green above and greyish below, with buffy flanks and a whitish throat. It inhabits a range of forest habitats, including primary and secondary montane forest, kerangas forest, and scrub, and is also occasionally found in gardens. It feeds primarily on small fruits—particularly mistletoe berries—as well as seeds, nectar, and various invertebrates. It builds a nest of moss, camouflaged on the outside with lichens and lined with the pith of tree ferns. The International Union for Conservation of Nature rates it as a species of least concern. Though its numbers have not been quantified, the black-sided flowerpecker is said to be common throughout much of its range, and any declines are not thought to be precipitous. However, destruction of forest for palm plantations may impact it.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Whitehead's trogon</span> Species of bird

Whitehead's trogon is a species of bird in the family Trogonidae. It is endemic to the island of Borneo, where it is an uncommon resident in primary mountain forest. One of Borneo's largest trogons at 29 to 33 cm long, it is sexually dimorphic. The male is crimson on the head, nape, and underparts, with a black throat and grey chest; the rest of his upperparts are cinnamon-coloured. The female is similarly patterned, but cinnamon-brown where the male is scarlet. The species was first described for science by Richard Bowdler Sharpe in 1888, who named it for British explorer and collector John Whitehead. There are no subspecies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bornean treepie</span> Species of bird

The Bornean treepie is a passerine bird belonging to the treepies genus, Dendrocitta, of in the crow family, Corvidae. It is endemic to the island of Borneo. It is sometimes treated as a subspecies of the Sumatran treepie.

The Hainan peacock-pheasant is an endangered bird that belongs to the pheasant family Phasianidae. This extremely rare species is endemic to the island of Hainan, China.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Malayan crested argus</span> Species of bird

The Malayan crested argus is a large and spectacular peafowl-like species of bird in the pheasant family with dark-brown-spotted black and buff plumage, a heavy pink bill, brown irises and blue skin around the eyes. The head has two crests; the hind crest, which extends down the occiput, is erected when alarmed and during intentional behaviors including pair bonding and courtship displays. The male has a broad and greatly elongated tail of twelve feathers. The tail covert of the male is the longest of any bird and is believed to contain the longest feathers to occur in a wild bird; the Reeves's pheasant has tail feathers of similar length but which are considerably narrower. The tail coverts measure up to 1.73 m (5.7 ft) in length, giving the bird a total length of 1.9–2.39 m (6.2–7.8 ft).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Malayan crested fireback</span> Species of bird

The Malayan crested fireback or Malay crested fireback is a species of forest pheasant found in lowland forests of the Thai-Malay Peninsula and Sumatra.

References

  1. BirdLife International. (2016). Polyplectron schleiermacheri. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22679393A84694321.en
  2. "Appendices | CITES". cites.org. Retrieved 2022-01-14.
  3. Phillipps, Quentin & Phillipps, Karen (2011). Phillipps’ Field Guide to the Birds of Borneo. Oxford, UK: John Beaufoy Publishing. ISBN   978-1-906780-56-2.
  4. Note that the molecular clock calibration method used by Kimball et al. (2001) is now known to be inappropriate, yielding far too low estimates in galliform birds.
  5. Kimball, Rebecca T.; Braun, Edward L.; Ligon, J. David; Lucchini, Vittorio; Randi, Ettore (2001). "A molecular phylogeny of the peacock-pheasants (Galliformes: Polyplectron spp.) indicates loss and reduction of ornamental traits and display behaviours" (PDF). Biological Journal of the Linnean Society. 73 (2): 187. doi: 10.1111/j.1095-8312.2001.tb01356.x .