Germain's Peacock Pheasant
Encyclopedia
The Germain's Peacock-Pheasant, Polyplectron germaini is a medium-sized, approximately 60 cm long, brownish dark pheasant
with finely spotted buff, short crest, bare red facial skin, brown iris
and purplish-blue ocelli on upperbody plumage and half of its tail of twenty feathers. Both sexes are similar. The female has eighteen tail feathers and is smaller than male.
The Germain's Peacock-Pheasant is endemic
to southern Indochina
. It is found in semi-evergreen
dry forests of southern Vietnam
and eastern Cambodia
. The female usually lays two creamy-white eggs.
The phylogeny of this species is somewhat enigmatic. mtDNA cytochrome b
and D-loop
as well as the nuclear
ovomucoid intron
G data confirms that it belongs to a clade
together with the Grey Peacock-Pheasant
, but also the "brown" southernly species Bronze-tailed Peacock-Pheasant and Mountain Peacock-Pheasant. Biogeography
suggests that it may indeed be the most ancient form in its clade, speciating
parapatrically or peripatrically in Cochinchina
(Kimball et al. 2001). This probably took place in the Late Pliocene, roughly 4-3 mya.
The name commemorates the French
colonial army's veterinary surgeon Louis Rodolphe Germain.
Due to ongoing habitat loss and limited range, the Germain's Peacock-Pheasant is evaluated as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List
of Threatened Species. It is listed on Appendix II of CITES.
Pheasant
Pheasants refer to some members of the Phasianinae subfamily of Phasianidae in the order Galliformes.Pheasants are characterised by strong sexual dimorphism, males being highly ornate with bright colours and adornments such as wattles and long tails. Males are usually larger than females and have...
with finely spotted buff, short crest, bare red facial skin, brown iris
Iris (anatomy)
The iris is a thin, circular structure in the eye, responsible for controlling the diameter and size of the pupils and thus the amount of light reaching the retina. "Eye color" is the color of the iris, which can be green, blue, or brown. In some cases it can be hazel , grey, violet, or even pink...
and purplish-blue ocelli on upperbody plumage and half of its tail of twenty feathers. Both sexes are similar. The female has eighteen tail feathers and is smaller than male.
The Germain's Peacock-Pheasant is endemic
Endemism in birds
An endemic bird area is a region of the world that contains two or more restricted-range species, while a "secondary area" contains one or more restricted-range species. Both terms were devised by Birdlife International....
to southern Indochina
Indochina
The Indochinese peninsula, is a region in Southeast Asia. It lies roughly southwest of China, and east of India. The name has its origins in the French, Indochine, as a combination of the names of "China" and "India", and was adopted when French colonizers in Vietnam began expanding their territory...
. It is found in semi-evergreen
Evergreen
In botany, an evergreen plant is a plant that has leaves in all seasons. This contrasts with deciduous plants, which completely lose their foliage during the winter or dry season.There are many different kinds of evergreen plants, both trees and shrubs...
dry forests of southern Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
and eastern Cambodia
Cambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
. The female usually lays two creamy-white eggs.
The phylogeny of this species is somewhat enigmatic. mtDNA cytochrome b
Cytochrome b
Cytochrome b/b6 is the main subunit of transmembrane cytochrome bc1 and b6f complexes. In addition, it commonly refers to a region of mtDNA used for population genetics and phylogenetics.- Function :...
and D-loop
D-loop
In molecular biology, a displacement loop or D-loop is a DNA structure where the two strands of a double-stranded DNA molecule are separated for a stretch and held apart by a third strand of DNA. The third strand has a base sequence which is complementary to one of the main strands and pairs with...
as well as the nuclear
Nuclear DNA
Nuclear DNA, nuclear deoxyribonucleic acid , is DNA contained within a nucleus of eukaryotic organisms. In mammals and vertebrates, nuclear DNA encodes more of the genome than the mitochondrial DNA and is composed of information inherited from two parents, one male, and one female, rather than...
ovomucoid intron
Intron
An intron is any nucleotide sequence within a gene that is removed by RNA splicing to generate the final mature RNA product of a gene. The term intron refers to both the DNA sequence within a gene, and the corresponding sequence in RNA transcripts. Sequences that are joined together in the final...
G data confirms that it belongs to a clade
Clade
A clade is a group consisting of a species and all its descendants. In the terms of biological systematics, a clade is a single "branch" on the "tree of life". The idea that such a "natural group" of organisms should be grouped together and given a taxonomic name is central to biological...
together with the Grey Peacock-Pheasant
Grey Peacock-pheasant
The Grey Peacock-Pheasant, Polyplectron bicalcaratum also known as Burmese Peacock is a large Southeast Asian member of the order Galliformes. It is rather closely related to the peafowl , and like these – and like most other Polyplectron – has brilliant eyespots on its plumage...
, but also the "brown" southernly species Bronze-tailed Peacock-Pheasant and Mountain Peacock-Pheasant. Biogeography
Biogeography
Biogeography is the study of the distribution of species , organisms, and ecosystems in space and through geological time. Organisms and biological communities vary in a highly regular fashion along geographic gradients of latitude, elevation, isolation and habitat area...
suggests that it may indeed be the most ancient form in its clade, speciating
Speciation
Speciation is the evolutionary process by which new biological species arise. The biologist Orator F. Cook seems to have been the first to coin the term 'speciation' for the splitting of lineages or 'cladogenesis,' as opposed to 'anagenesis' or 'phyletic evolution' occurring within lineages...
parapatrically or peripatrically in Cochinchina
Cochinchina
Cochinchina is a region encompassing the southern third of Vietnam whose principal city is Saigon. It was a French colony from 1862 to 1954. The later state of South Vietnam was created in 1954 by combining Cochinchina with southern Annam. In Vietnamese, the region is called Nam Bộ...
(Kimball et al. 2001). This probably took place in the Late Pliocene, roughly 4-3 mya.
The name commemorates the French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
colonial army's veterinary surgeon Louis Rodolphe Germain.
Due to ongoing habitat loss and limited range, the Germain's Peacock-Pheasant is evaluated as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List
IUCN Red List
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species , founded in 1963, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biological species. The International Union for Conservation of Nature is the world's main authority on the conservation status of species...
of Threatened Species. It is listed on Appendix II of CITES.