Sri Lanka Junglefowl

About the Sri Lanka Junglefowl

The Sri Lankan junglefowl (Gallus lafayettii), also known as the Ceylon junglefowl or Lafayette's junglefowl, is a member of the Galliformes bird order. It is a common endemic bird in Sri Lanka, where it is the national bird. It is closely related to the red junglefowl (G. gallus), the wild junglefowl from which the chicken was domesticated. However, it is even more closely related to the gray junglefowl. Sri Lankan junglefowl and red junglefowl diverged about 2.8 million years ago, whereas time of divergence between the Sri Lankan junglefowl and grey junglefowl was 1.8 million years ago.

Evidence of introgressive hybridization from Sri Lanka junglefowl has also been established in domestic chicken. The specific name of the Sri Lankan junglefowl commemorates the French aristocrat Gilbert du Motier, marquis de La Fayette (1757–1834).

As with other junglefowl, the Sri Lankan junglefowl is strongly sexually dimorphic; the male is much larger than the female, with more vivid plumage and a highly exaggerated wattle and comb. The male Sri Lankan junglefowl ranges from 66–72 cm (26–28 in) in length and 790–1,140 g (1.74–2.51 lb) in weight, essentially resembling a large... Wikipedia →