Edwards’s Pheasant
I.U.C.N status
International Union for Conservation of Nature
LC
Least concern
NT
Near threatened
VU
Vulnerable
EN
Endangered
CR
Critically endangered
EW
Extinct in the wild
EX
Extinct
Identity card
Class :
Birds
Order :
Galliformes
Family :
Phasianidae
Genus :
Lophura
Species :
edwardsi
Average size
65 cm
Weight
1.1 kg
Longevity
10 to 12 years
Sexual maturity
2 years
Incubation
About 25 days
Clutch
4 to 7 eggs
Diet
Omnivore
Seeds, shoots, berries, tubers, insects...
Did you know?
Males of this species have a black-blue plumage with a white crest, while females have a brown plumage. This bird is named after French ornithologist Alphonse Milne-Edwards, who first described the species in only 1896.
Threats and conservation
After the Second World War and the conflicts in Vietnam, the species remained nowhere to be found, suggesting its extinction in the wild. The main cause of its decline is habitat loss throughout its former distribution area. The Edwards’s pheasant was rediscovered on August 26, 1996 in the Phong Dien area. A project to reintroduce individuals from the controlled environment into protected forests is underway.
