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Argusianus argus
Basic stats
Diet
Fallen fruit, seeds, invertebrates
Habitat
Lowland and hill dipterocarp forest
Range
Borneo, Sumatra, Peninsular Malaysia
Clutch size
2 eggs
Incubation period
About 24–25 days
Size
Very large (male up to 200cm including tail)
Wingspan
~70–75cm (wing chord)
Weight
1.6–2.7kg
One of the largest and most spectacular pheasants in the world. Males have extraordinarily elongated secondary wing feathers covered in eye-like ocelli, displayed in a huge fanned circle during courtship on a cleared forest-floor 'dancing ground'. Females are much plainer, brown and cryptic.
Best detected by its far-carrying, two-note 'kwow-wow' call echoing through lowland forest at dawn and dusk, long before any visual sighting. Males maintain and defend a cleared display court for years, making these sites — when known to guides — a reliable place to wait quietly.
