Himalayan monal
Scientific name: Lophophorus impejanus (Latham, 1790)
Overview
The Himalayan monal, also called Impeyan monal, is a landfowl native to Himalayan forests and shrublands at elevations of 2,100–4,500 m (6,900–14,800 ft). It is part of the family Phasianidae and is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List. It is the national bird of Nepal, where it is known as the danphe or danfe, and state bird of Uttarakhand, India, where it is known as a monal. The scientific name commemorates Lady Mary Impey, the wife of the British chief justice of Bengal, Sir Elijah Impey.
From the Wikipedia article “Himalayan monal”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Conservation status
Least concern on the IUCN Red List, as recorded on Wikidata, citing The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2021.3.
Where it lives
The Catalogue of Life records it in: Europe & Northern Asia (excluding China); Southern Asia.
Common names
Names in other languages (10)
- Arabic
- حنقط بهي
- Chinese
- 棕尾虹雉
- French
- Lophophore resplendissant
- German
- Rostschwanz-Glanzfasan, Rostschwanzmonal
- Hindi
- हिमालयी मोनाल
- Japanese
- ニジキジ
- Persian
- کاکلپری هیمالیا
- Portuguese
- monal, monal-de-cauda-ruiva, monal-do-himalaia
- Russian
- Гималайский монал
- Spanish
- Monal colirrojo
Related animals
Sources
-
Catalogue of Life — scientific name, classification, common names and range.
Version 2026-09-11, CC BY 4.0.
This species in the Catalogue of Life.
Citation
Bánki, O., Roskov, Y., Döring, M., Ower, G., Hernández Robles, D. R., Plata Corredor, C. A., Stjernegaard Jeppesen, T., Örn, A., Pape, T., Hobern, D., Garnett, S., Little, H., DeWalt, R. E., Miller, J., Orrell, T., Aalbu, R., Abbott, J., Aedo, C., Aescht, E., et al. (2026). Catalogue of Life (Version 2026-09-11). Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgz5n Source database: The Integrated Taxonomic Information System.
- GBIF — species page and recorded occurrences.
- Wikidata — conservation status, names in other languages. Q742818, CC0 1.0.
- Wikipedia — overview, from the article “Himalayan monal”, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Photo — AJIT HOTA, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. File page.
- Range map — Izvora, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons. File page.
Last updated: 4 October 2026