Blue Eared Pheasant
Crossoptilon auritum
Silhouette: painting Guo · PhyloPic
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassAves (Birds)
- OrderGalliformes (Landfowl)
- FamilyPhasianidae (Pheasants, Grouse, and Allies)
- GenusCrossoptilon (Eared-Pheasants)
- SpeciesCrossoptilon auritum (Blue Eared Pheasant)
About the Blue Eared Pheasant
The blue eared pheasant (Crossoptilon auritum), also sometimes hyphenated as blue eared-pheasant, is a large pheasant endemic to China. Although it is considered rare, the blue eared pheasant is evaluated as of least concern.
The blue eared pheasant is around 96 cm (38 in) long (including the 49–56 cm (19–22 in) tail); males weigh 1700–2110 g, and females 1450–1880 g. It has dark blue-grey plumage with velvet black crown, red facial wattles of bare skin surrounding the eyes, yellow iris, long white ear coverts below and behind the eyes, a pale pink bill, and crimson legs. Its tail of 24 elongated bluish-grey feathers is curved, loose, and dark-tipped, with the outer five pairs of tail feathers having a white base. Both sexes have similar plumage, though the male is slightly larger, and has short spurs on the legs.
The blue eared pheasant is found in the mountain forests of central China, preferring juniper scrub in alpine meadows at 2700–4400 m altitude. Its range is to the northeast of the closely related white eared pheasant C. crossoptilon, and southwest of the brown eared pheasant C. mantchuricum.
Its diet consists mainly (about... Wikipedia →
Recent sightings of Blue Eared Pheasant in Jiuzhaigou National Park
LIVEiNaturalistClosest Relatives at Jiuzhaigou National Park
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Global Distribution
Warmer areas are where this animal is recorded most often.
Parks Where Found
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jiuzhaigou National Park | 🇨🇳 China |
More parks will be added in future updates.
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a Blue Eared Pheasant in Jiuzhaigou National Park?
About 30% of wildlife watchers report a Blue Eared Pheasant sighting in Jiuzhaigou National Park, based on 59 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Blue Eared Pheasant in Jiuzhaigou National Park?
June has the highest sighting rate for Blue Eared Pheasant in Jiuzhaigou National Park in our monthly data.