Eared pheasants are pheasants from the genus Crossoptilon in the family Phasianidae.
Species Established by Brian Houghton Hodgson in 1838, the genus contains four species: Image Name Common name Distribution Crossoptilon crossoptilon White eared pheasant China, Qinghai, Sichuan, Yunnan, and Tibet Crossoptilon harmani Tibetan eared pheasant southeast Tibet and adjacent northern India Crossoptilon mantchuricum Brown eared pheasant northeastern China (Shanxi and nearby provinces) Crossoptilon auritum Blue eared pheasant central China
The name Crossoptilon is a combination of the Greek words krossoi, meaning "fringe" and , meaning "feather"—a name Hodgson felt particularly applied to the white eared pheasant "distinguished amongst all its congeners by its ample fringe-like plumage, the dishevelled quality of which is communicated even to the central tail feathers". All are large, sexually monomorphic and found in China.
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