The Malayan crested fireback or Malay crested fireback (''Lophura rufa'') is a species of forest

pheasant 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 (and captive) populations, the pheasant genera native range is restricted to Eurasia ...

found in lowland forests of the

Thai-Malay Peninsula The Malay Peninsula ( Malay: ''Semenanjung Tanah Melayu'') is a peninsula in Mainland Southeast Asia. The landmass runs approximately north–south, and at its terminus, it is the southernmost point of the Asian continental mainland. The ar ...

and Sumatra.

Taxonomy

This species was formerly considered a subspecies of the

Bornean crested fireback The crested fireback (''Lophura ignita'') is a medium-sized, up to 70 cm 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 ...

(''L. ignita''), with both being grouped together as the crested fireback. Substantial plumage differences between both taxa led to the IUCN and

Clements Checklist ''The Clements Checklist of Birds of the World'' is a book by Jim Clements which presents a list of the bird species of the world. The most recent printed version is the sixth edition (2007), but has been updated yearly, the last version in 202 ...

splitting both, with the

International Ornithological Congress International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

also making this change in 2023. A pheasant of uncertain taxonomic provenance, popularly referred to as "Delacour's crested fireback" (formerly ''Lophura ignita macartneyi'') is found in south-eastern Sumatra and the male has white to the tail, whitish legs and a variable amount of

rufous Rufous () is a color that may be described as reddish-brown or brownish-red, as of rust or oxidised iron. The first recorded use of ''rufous'' as a color name in English was in 1782. However, the color is also recorded earlier in 1527 as a dia ...

below. As ''macartneyi'' specimens are variable, the

Handbook of Birds of the World The ''Handbook of the Birds of the World'' (HBW) is a multi-volume series produced by the Spanish publishing house Lynx Edicions in partnership with BirdLife International. It is the first handbook to cover every known living species of bird. T ...

regards it as a hybrid between ''L. rufa'' and a possible relictual or introduced population of ''L. ignita''. In 2023, the International Ornithological Congress officially recognized it as representing a

hybrid swarm A hybrid swarm is a population of hybrids that has survived beyond the initial hybrid generation, with interbreeding between hybrid individuals and backcrossing with its parent types. Such population are highly variable, with the genetic and phe ...

between ''L. ignita'' and ''L. rufa'', and classified it within ''L. rufa''.

Description

It is a medium-sized, up to 70 cm long pheasant with a

peacock Peafowl is a common name for three bird species in the genera '' Pavo'' and '' Afropavo'' within the tribe Pavonini of the family Phasianidae, the pheasants and their allies. Male peafowl are referred to as peacocks, and female peafowl are r ...

-like dark crest, bluish black plumage, reddish brown rump, black outer tail feathers, red

iris Iris most often refers to: *Iris (anatomy), part of the eye *Iris (mythology), a Greek goddess * ''Iris'' (plant), a genus of flowering plants * Iris (color), an ambiguous color term Iris or IRIS may also refer to: Arts and media Fictional ent ...

and bare blue facial skin. The female is a brown bird with short crest, blue facial skin and spotted black-and-white below. It is distinguished from the Bornean crested fireback by its white central tail feathers, red legs and bluish black streaked white below.

Status

Due to ongoing habitat loss and overhunting in some areas, the Malayan crested fireback is evaluated as Vulnerable on the

IUCN Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biol ...

of Threatened Species.

References

Gallopheasants Birds of Thailand Birds of Myanmar Birds of Malaysia Birds of Sumatra Birds described in 1822 Taxa named by Thomas Stamford Raffles {{Taxonbar, from=Q55111783