Junglefowl
Encyclopedia
Junglefowl are the four living species
of bird
from the genus Gallus in the Gallinaceous bird order, which occur in India
, Sri Lanka
, Southeast Asia
and Indonesia
.
These are large birds, with colourful male plumage
, but are nevertheless difficult to see in the dense vegetation they inhabit.
As with many birds in the pheasant family, the male takes no part in the incubation of the egg
or rearing of the precocial
young. These duties are performed by the drab and well-camouflage
d female.
The junglefowl are seed
-eaters, but insect
s are also taken, particularly by the young birds.
One of the species in this genus, the Red Junglefowl, is of historical importance as the likely ancestor of the domesticated chicken
, although it has been suggested the Grey Junglefowl was also involved.
The Sri Lanka Junglefowl
is the National Bird of Sri Lanka
.
Prehistorically, the genus Gallus was found all over Eurasia
; in fact it appears to have evolved in southeastern Europe. Several fossil
species have been described, but their distinctness is not firmly established in all cases:
Species
In biology, a species is one of the basic units of biological classification and a taxonomic rank. A species is often defined as a group of organisms capable of interbreeding and producing fertile offspring. While in many cases this definition is adequate, more precise or differing measures are...
of bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
from the genus Gallus in the Gallinaceous bird order, which occur in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
, Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia
Southeast Asia, South-East Asia, South East Asia or Southeastern Asia is a subregion of Asia, consisting of the countries that are geographically south of China, east of India, west of New Guinea and north of Australia. The region lies on the intersection of geological plates, with heavy seismic...
and Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
.
These are large birds, with colourful male plumage
Feather
Feathers are one of the epidermal growths that form the distinctive outer covering, or plumage, on birds and some non-avian theropod dinosaurs. They are considered the most complex integumentary structures found in vertebrates, and indeed a premier example of a complex evolutionary novelty. They...
, but are nevertheless difficult to see in the dense vegetation they inhabit.
As with many birds in the pheasant family, the male takes no part in the incubation of the egg
Egg (biology)
An egg is an organic vessel in which an embryo first begins to develop. In most birds, reptiles, insects, molluscs, fish, and monotremes, an egg is the zygote, resulting from fertilization of the ovum, which is expelled from the body and permitted to develop outside the body until the developing...
or rearing of the precocial
Precocial
In biology, the term precocial refers to species in which the young are relatively mature and mobile from the moment of birth or hatching. The opposite developmental strategy is called "altricial," where the young are born or hatched helpless. Extremely precocial species may be called...
young. These duties are performed by the drab and well-camouflage
Camouflage
Camouflage is a method of concealment that allows an otherwise visible animal, military vehicle, or other object to remain unnoticed, by blending with its environment. Examples include a leopard's spotted coat, the battledress of a modern soldier and a leaf-mimic butterfly...
d female.
The junglefowl are seed
Seed
A seed is a small embryonic plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some stored food. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant...
-eaters, but insect
Insect
Insects are a class of living creatures within the arthropods that have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body , three pairs of jointed legs, compound eyes, and two antennae...
s are also taken, particularly by the young birds.
One of the species in this genus, the Red Junglefowl, is of historical importance as the likely ancestor of the domesticated chicken
Chicken
The chicken is a domesticated fowl, a subspecies of the Red Junglefowl. As one of the most common and widespread domestic animals, and with a population of more than 24 billion in 2003, there are more chickens in the world than any other species of bird...
, although it has been suggested the Grey Junglefowl was also involved.
The Sri Lanka Junglefowl
Sri Lanka Junglefowl
The Sri Lankan Junglefowl , also known during the colonial era as the Ceylon Junglefowl, is a member of the pheasant family which is endemic to Sri Lanka, where it is the national bird. It is closely related to the Red Junglefowl , the wild junglefowl from which the chicken was domesticated...
is the National Bird of Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...
.
Species
- Red JunglefowlRed JunglefowlThe Red Junglefowl is a tropical member of the Pheasant family. They are thought to be ancestors of the domestic chicken with some hybridisation with the Grey Junglefowl...
, Gallus gallus - Sri Lanka JunglefowlSri Lanka JunglefowlThe Sri Lankan Junglefowl , also known during the colonial era as the Ceylon Junglefowl, is a member of the pheasant family which is endemic to Sri Lanka, where it is the national bird. It is closely related to the Red Junglefowl , the wild junglefowl from which the chicken was domesticated...
, Gallus lafayetii - Grey JunglefowlGrey JunglefowlThe Grey Junglefowl , also known as Sonnerat's Junglefowl, is a wild relative of domestic fowl that is endemic to India. This species is found mainly in peninsular India and where it overlaps with the distribution of the Red Junglefowl, it is known to form hybrids...
, Gallus sonneratii - Green JunglefowlGreen JunglefowlThe Green Junglefowl, Gallus varius also known as Javan Junglefowl, Forktail or Green Javanese Junglefowl is a medium-sized, up to 75 cm long, bird in the pheasant family Phasianidae...
, Gallus varius
Prehistorically, the genus Gallus was found all over Eurasia
Eurasia
Eurasia is a continent or supercontinent comprising the traditional continents of Europe and Asia ; covering about 52,990,000 km2 or about 10.6% of the Earth's surface located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres...
; in fact it appears to have evolved in southeastern Europe. Several fossil
Fossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...
species have been described, but their distinctness is not firmly established in all cases:
- Gallus aesculapii (Late Miocene/Early Pliocene of Greece) - possibly belongs into PavoPavo (genus)The peafowl genus Pavo Linnaeus, 1758 consist of two species of spectacularly plumaged pheasants, the largest of the Phasianidae. Their highly elongated and elaborated trains are decorated with metallic ocelli; commonly called "tails", they are actually the uppertail coverts while the peacock's...
- Gallus moldovicus (Late Pliocene of Moldavia) - sometimes misspelt moldavicus, may be synonym of Pavo bravardi
- Gallus beremendensis (Late Pliocene/Early Pleistocene of E Europe)
- Giant Junglefowl Gallus karabachensis (Early Pleistocene of Nagorno-Karabakh)
- Gallus tamanensis (Early Pleistocene? of Taman Peninsula)
- Gallus kudarensis (Early/Middle Pleistocene of Kudaro, South Ossetia)
- Gallus europaeus (Middle Pleistocene of Italy)
- Gallus sp. (Middle/Late Pleistocene of Trinka Cave, Moldavia)
- Gallus imereticus (Late Pleistocene of Gvardjilas-Klde, Imeretia)
- Gallus meschtscheriensis (Late Pleistocene of Soungir, Russia)
- Gallus georgicus (Late Pleistocene - Early Holocene of Georgia)
- Gallus sp. (Late Pleistocene of Krivtcha Cave, Ukraine)
- Gallus sp. (Early Holocene of Dnieper region)