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| Common Name: | Cochin-Chinese red jungle fowl | Family: | Phasinadae |
| Latin Name: | Gallus gallus gallus | Diet: | Omnivore |
| Type: | Birds | Habitat: | Tropical Rainforests |
| Native To: | Asia | Social Unit: | Group |
| IUCN Red List Status: | Least Concern |
Cochin-Chinese red junglefowl at Edinburgh Zoo
Edinburgh Zoo currently has 2 adult Cochin-Chinese red junglefowl: a male hatched in 2002 and a female hatched in 2004. Both birds arrived at Edinburgh Zoo in 2008 from Fuengirola in Spain. The pair has had chicks in both 2008 and 2009 that were sent to other collections.
Where it can be found at Edinburgh Zoo
The junglefowl can be found in the Rainbow Landings Aviary (currently closed to the public) which they share with blue-faced honeyeaters and Nicobar pigeons.
Cochin-Chinese red junglefowl in the wild
There are five sub-species of red jungle fowl found throughout Asia and they are all the direct ancestors of domestic chickens. Cochin-Chinese red jungle fowl (Gallus gallus gallus) are found in Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam living in forests, mangroves, plantations and scrublands.
As with all fowl, the males are larger and more colourful than the females. Both the skin on the face and the comb on the top of the adult male’s head is red while the neck, back and upper chest are covered with bronze and golden feathers. The lower back is white while the long tail feathers are black with flecks of dark blue, green and purple. Black feathers cover the lower chest and the wings are a combination of blue, dark red and light orange feathers. The cocks moult in the summer with black feathers replacing the bronze on the neck, and lose their long tails. Red jungle fowl hens are covered in golden brown feathers and have pale red faces. As they incubate the eggs and care for the chicks alone, this helps camouflage them from predators in the undergrowth.
Red jungle fowl live in mixed groups which have a "pecking order" for both the males and females. They communicate with different calls and alert each other to threats from predators. Although they can fly, they only do this to reach roosting sites in the trees and to escape any threat. During the day they spend their time on the ground using their feet to uncover fruit, insects and seeds.
As Cochin-Chinese red jungle fowl are able to live in a variety of areas, loss of habitat is not an immediate risk to them. However interbreeding with domesticated chickens has greatly reduced the number of "pure" red jungle fowl.
IUCN Red List Category: Least Concern
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