Scientific Name：Lophophorus impejanus

Author:Clingerman Taxidermy

Category：Birds

Year：Undated

Introduction：The Himalayan Monal is also known as the Impeyan Monal. The adult male has multicolored plumage and a tufted crest. The female is dull brownish color, and the tail feathers are brown and black with white tips. Besides, the lower back and neck are white, and the crest is barely visible. It is the national bird of Nepal and appears on the back of Nepal's 50-rupee note.

The Himalayan Monal is a typical high mountain pheasant. It occupies coniferous and broad-leaved mixed forest, shrubberies, alpine meadows at altitudes between 2,500 and 5,000 meters. It may descend to 2,000 meters in the winter when they congregate in large coveys and roost communally. They are usually active in the daytime and rest on boulders or in azalea bushes at night. Their diet consists primarily of vegetable stalks and roots, occasionally eating insects and other small organisms. The breeding season is from April to August, during which time males perform exquisite dances to attract females.

The species is threatened by habitat destruction and poaching. In many Himalayan regions, the crest feather has been used to decorate men's hats, and the pheasant is still hunted in some areas even though hunting was banned in 1982, which significantly decreased the amount of the Himalayan Monal to endangered status.

Accession Number:0000349