Red Junglefowl

*The nominate race of red junglefowl has a mix of feather colours, with orange, brown, red, gold, grey, white, olive and even metallic green plumage. The tail of the male roosters can grow up to 28 cm, and the whole bird may be as long as 70 cm. There are 14 tail feathers. A moult in June changes the bird's plumage to an eclipse pattern, which lasts through October. The male eclipse pattern includes a black feather in the middle of the back and small red-orange plumes spread across the body. Female eclipse plumage is generally indistinguishable from the plumage at other seasons, but the moulting schedule is the same as that of males.Compared to the more familiar domestic chicken, the red junglefowl has a much smaller body mass in females and is brighter in coloration. Junglefowl are also behaviourally different from domestic chickens, being naturally very shy of humans compared to the much tamer domesticated subspecies.

Scientific name: Gallus gallus

Order: Galliformes

Family: Phasiandae