Red Junglefowl

Open encyclopedia reference

The red junglefowl (Gallus gallus), also known as the Indian red junglefowl (and formerly the bankiva or bankiva-fowl), is a species of tropical, galliform bird in the phasianid family, found across much of Southeast Asia and parts of South Asia.

The red junglefowl was the primary species to give rise to today's many breeds of chicken (G. g. domesticus). Lesser contributions came from the grey junglefowl (G. sonneratii), Sri Lankan junglefowl (G. lafayettii) and the Javanese green junglefowl (G. varius). Whole genome sequencing has revealed that the chicken was first domesticated from red junglefowl ca. 8,000 years ago, with this domestication event involving multiple maternal origins.

The domesticated variant is raised worldwide by humans in their tens of billions for their meat, eggs, colourful plumage and companionship. The wild form of G. gallus is sometimes used in zoos, parks or botanical gardens as a form of pest control, similarly to—and often kept with—the Indian peafowl (Pavo cristatus) or the helmeted guinea fowl (Numida meleagris).

Wikipedia contributors, Red junglefowl; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T04:07:38.840674+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.

Identity & source status

Scientific name

Gallus gallus (Linnaeus, 1758)

Name authority

(Linnaeus, 1758)

Common name

Red Junglefowl

Rank

species

Accepted status

accepted

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Aves

Order

Galliformes

Family

Phasianidae

Genus

Gallus

Extinction status

Recorded extant

Classification family tree

Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.

1. domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
2. kingdomAnimalia
3. phylumChordata
4. subphylumVertebrata
5. infraphylumGnathostomata
6. parvphylumOsteichthyes
7. megaclassTetrapoda
8. classAves
9. orderGalliformes
10. familyPhasianidae
11. genusGallus Brisson, 1760
12. speciesGallus gallus (Linnaeus, 1758)

Close classified relatives

These entries share the source’s genus, Gallus. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.

Browse 123 records assigned to Phasianidae.

Documented distribution

Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.

Source literature & publication evidence

References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.

1. https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=176086 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references

Origins, evidence & remaining research

Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.

Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.

Dataset citation & attribution

This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11

Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.

Stable key: col:3F72J. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.