NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Tibetan Eared Pheasant
Crossoptilon harmani Elwes, 1881
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.
Tibetan eared-pheasant (Crossoptilon harmani) southwest of Lhasa. Photo by James Eaton. Original iNaturalist observation here: https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/207907624
James Eaton · CC0 · Image sourceProvider-generated thumbnail requested at 800 pixels; no local editing Local WebP display rendition; resized without cropping.
Open encyclopedia reference
The Tibetan eared pheasant (Crossoptilon harmani), also called Elwes' eared pheasant, is a species of bird in the family Phasianidae found in southeast Tibet and adjacent northern India, usually between 3,000 and 5,000 m (9,800 and 16,400 ft) elevation, but has been seen down to 2,280 m (7,500 ft) in winter. The species is named after Henry John Harman.
Their natural habitats are boreal and temperate forests. Seen in bushy and grassy clearings, rhododendron thickets, and tall dense scrub in valleys, these birds are threatened by habitat destruction and hunting. They form monogamous pair bonds in the spring. Their eggs are laid from May to July, and incubated by the females.
Wikipedia contributors, Tibetan eared pheasant; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T10:00:04.294208+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Crossoptilon harmani Elwes, 1881
- Name authority
- Elwes, 1881
- Common name
- Tibetan Eared Pheasant
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Galliformes
- Family
- Phasianidae
- Genus
- Crossoptilon
- 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
- classAves
- orderGalliformes
- familyPhasianidae
- genusCrossoptilon Hodgson, 1838
- speciesCrossoptilon harmani Elwes, 1881
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Crossoptilon. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| White Eared PheasantCrossoptilon crossoptilon (Hodgson, 1838) | PhasianidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
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=553886 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.
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:ZMMT. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.