Crested Fireback
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 Lophura ignita ignita
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| Lophura ignita (Shaw, 1797) |
The Crested Fireback, Lophura ignita is a medium-sized, up to 70cm long, forest pheasant with a peacock-like dark crest, bluish black plumage, reddish brown rump, black outer tail feathers, red iris and bare blue facial skin. The female is a brown bird with short crest, blue facial skin and spotted black-and-white below.
The Crested Fireback is found throughout lowland forests of Peninsular Malaysia, Thailand, Borneo and Sumatra. There are four subspecies of the Crested Fireback, with two notable and very different forms. The nominate male Bornean Crested Fireback, Lophura ignita ignita of Borneo and Bangka Island has a brown central tail feathers, whitish legs and reddish brown below. The male Vieillot's Crested Fireback, Lophura ignita rufa of the Peninsular and Sumatra has a white central tail feathers, red legs and bluish black streaked white below. The female of nominate form has a dark, blackish tail and whitish legs, while female of the latter has a chestnut brown tail and red legs.
The diet consists mainly of plants, fruits and small animals. The female usually lays between four to eight creamy white eggs.
Due to ongoing habitat loss and overhunting in some areas, the Crested Fireback is evaluated as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. It is listed on Appendix III of CITES in Malaysia.
[edit] References
- BirdLife International (2004). Lophura ignita. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 30 October 2006. Database entry includes a brief justification of why this species is near threatened
