NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Chinese Pangolin
Manis pentadactyla Linnaeus, 1758
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The Chinese pangolin (Manis pentadactyla) is a pangolin native to the northern Indian subcontinent, northern parts of Southeast Asia and southern China. It has been listed as Critically Endangered on the IUCN Red List since 2014, as the wild population is estimated to have declined by more than 80% in three pangolin generations, equal to 21 years. It is threatened by poaching for the illegal wildlife trade.
Wikipedia contributors, Chinese pangolin; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T05:15:17.059476+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Manis pentadactyla Linnaeus, 1758
- Name authority
- Linnaeus, 1758
- Common name
- Chinese Pangolin
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Mammalia
- Order
- Pholidota
- Family
- Manidae
- Genus
- Manis
- 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.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classMammalia Linnaeus, 1758
- subclassTheria Parker & Haswell, 1897
- infraclassEutheria Gill, 1872
- orderPholidota Weber, 1904
- familyManidae Gray, 1821
- subfamilyManinae Gray, 1821
- genusManis Linnaeus, 1758
- speciesManis pentadactyla Linnaeus, 1758
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Manis. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Indian PangolinManis crassicaudata É. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire, 1803 | ManidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Palawan PangolinManis culionensis (de Elera, 1915) | ManidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Indo-Burmese PangolinManis indoburmanica Wangmo, Ghosh, Dolker, Joshi, Sharma & Thakur, 2025 | ManidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Malayan PangolinManis javanica Desmarest, 1822 | ManidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Manis brachyura Erxleben, 1777 Erxleben, 1777 | synonym |
| Pholidotus assamensis Fitzinger, 1872 Fitzinger, 1872 | synonym |
| Pholidotus kreyenbergi Matschie, 1907 Matschie, 1907 | synonym |
| Manis dalmanni Sundevall, 1843 Sundevall, 1843 | synonym |
| Phatages bengalensis (Fitzinger, 1872) (Fitzinger, 1872) | synonym |
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.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=584931 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:3XVJS. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.