RHEINARDIUS 

 OCELLATED PHEASANTS 



Order GALLIFORMES 



Family PHASIANIDAE 



Subfamily ARGUSIANINAE 



Genus RHEINARDIUS 



The Ocellated Pheasants are large birds, as strange in appearance as they are 

 rare and mysterious in life. Their general characters unite them closely with the 

 argus pheasants, but they are much less specialized both in development of second- 

 aries, as well as in pattern and colour, while the face and neck are more normally 

 feathered. In this generalization, and in living at considerable elevations, they 

 resemble the Chalcurus bronze-tailed peacock pheasants in their relationship to the 

 genus Polyplectron. 



These birds clear display-arenas like the argus, and there is some indication 

 that they also lay only two eggs. There is a long, hairy nuchal crest, and the 

 central rectrices of the male are greatly elongated. Spurs are absent. 



The females are smaller and lack the long tail-feathers, and in pattern and 

 colour are much more generalized than the female argus. The general pattern of 

 Rheinardius females resembles that of the back and rump of the hen argus. 



RHEINARDIUS 



Type 



Rheinardius Oustal. Bull. Soc. Philom. (7) VI. 1882, p. 254 R. ocellatus 



Rheinardius Sclat. and Saund. Ibis, 1883, p. 107 R. ocellatus 



i^y^^w^rifiVj Oustal. N. Arch. Mus. (2), VIII. 1885, p. 256 R. ocellatus 



The Ocellated Pheasants are found in the mountain forests of Western Annam, 

 and along the central mountain range of the Malay Peninsula. 

 Two species of Rheinardius are recognized : 



Annam Ocellated Pheasant . . . . . . . Rheinardius ocellatus (Elliot) 



Malay Ocellated Pheasant Rheinardius nigrescens Rothschild 



KEY TO THE FORMS OF RHEINARDIUS 



I. Central tail-feathers enormously elongated (males). 



a Dorsal spots bufify and irregular ocellatus 



b Dorsal spots white and round nigrescens 



II. Central tail-feathers not enormously elongated (females). 



a Ventral plumage brown ocellatus 



b Ventral plumage buffy nigrescens 



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