LC
White Eared-pheasant Crossoptilon crossoptilon



Taxonomy

Taxonomic source(s)
del Hoyo, J., Collar, N.J., Christie, D.A., Elliott, A. and Fishpool, L.D.C. 2014. HBW and BirdLife International Illustrated Checklist of the Birds of the World. Volume 1: Non-passerines. Lynx Edicions BirdLife International, Barcelona, Spain and Cambridge, UK.

IUCN Red List criteria met and history
Red List criteria met
Critically Endangered Endangered Vulnerable
- - -

Red List history
Year Category Criteria
2024 Least Concern
2016 Near Threatened C1+2a(i)
2012 Near Threatened C1+2a(i)
2008 Near Threatened C1; C2a(i)
2007 Near Threatened
2004 Near Threatened
2000 Lower Risk/Near Threatened
1996 Vulnerable
1994 Vulnerable
1988 Threatened
Species attributes

Migratory status not a migrant Forest dependency medium
Land-mass type continent
Average mass -
Range

Estimate Data quality
Extent of Occurrence (breeding/resident) 427,000 km2 medium
Severely fragmented? no -
Population
Estimate Data quality Derivation Year of estimate
Population size unknown - - -
Population trend stable poor suspected -
Generation length 8.3 years - - -

Population justification: Population size unknown. Area of suitable habitat is vast within its range, within which this species is often found to be common/regularly encountered (e.g. Madge and McGowan 2002, Brooks et al. 2019, Li et al. 2022, eBird 2024). While hunting is considered a local threat, much of this species' range is remote from where this could plausibly be considered a threat capable of globally suppressing numbers to a density low enough to suspect the population size might be small. Accordingly, while the population size is not formally estimated here, it is considered highly likely to number in the tens, if not hundreds, of thousands.

Trend justification: Population trend difficult to establish, but suspected here to be stable. Plausible operating threats to this species include habitat loss/degradation and hunting, but these have largely been on a local scale with large parts of this species' vast range remaining remote from exploitation and degradation. Habitat extent loss between 2010 and 2020 within its range was minimal (<1%) with some evidence that reforestation efforts in some provinces (particularly Sichuan) since the late 1990s may have increased the area of habitat suitable for this species (data analysed from sRedList [2023] using data from Jung et al. [2020]), while in the western parts of its range it likely benefits from traditional Tibetan culture, which prohibits the species' exploitation.


Country/territory distribution
Country/Territory Presence Origin Resident Breeding visitor Non-breeding visitor Passage migrant
China (mainland) extant native yes

Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBA)
Country/Territory IBA Name
China (mainland) Baima Xueshan Nature Reserve
China (mainland) Fengtongzhai Qiaoqi
China (mainland) Huanglongsi Nature Reserve
China (mainland) Jiuding Shan Nature Reserve
China (mainland) Labahe Nature Reserve
China (mainland) Xiaozhaizigou Nature Reserve
China (mainland) Yulong Xueshan Nature Reserve

Habitats & altitude
Habitat (level 1) Habitat (level 2) Importance Occurrence
Forest Temperate major resident
Shrubland Subtropical/Tropical High Altitude major resident
Shrubland Temperate major breeding
Altitude 3000 - 4300 m Occasional altitudinal limits (min) 2800 m

Threats & impact
Threat (level 1) Threat (level 2) Impact and Stresses
Biological resource use Hunting & trapping terrestrial animals - Intentional use (species is the target) Timing Scope Severity Impact
Ongoing Minority (<50%) No decline Low Impact: 4
Stresses
Species mortality
Biological resource use Logging & wood harvesting - Unintentional effects: (subsistence/small scale) [harvest] Timing Scope Severity Impact
Ongoing Minority (<50%) No decline Low Impact: 4
Stresses
Ecosystem degradation

Utilisation
Purpose Scale
Food - human subsistence

Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: White Eared-pheasant Crossoptilon crossoptilon. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/white-eared-pheasant-crossoptilon-crossoptilon on 18/12/2024.
Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2024) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/search on 18/12/2024.