Himalayan monal

Himalayan monal
Lophophorus impejanus, Latham, 1790

The males are characterised by the metallic colour of their feathers. The females are rather uniformly coloured in brown. Their natural habitats are oak-fir mixed forests with open grassy slopes and cliffs, located at an altitude of 2500–5000 m above sea level. In winter they descend to about 2000 metres, gathering into larger bevies. Their strong beaks are well-suited for digging in hard mountain soil, up to 25 cm deep.
Distribution: from eastern Afghanistan to western China; the Himalayas, northern India and Nepal

male
body length: 64–72 cm
wing length: 29–32 cm
body mass: 1,98–2,38 kg
female
body length: 64–72 cm
wing length: 26–29 cm
body mass: 1,8–2,15 kg