Great Argus (Argusianus argus)
About the Great Argus
The great argus or greater argus (Argusianus argus) is a large species of pheasant native to the jungles of Borneo, Sumatra and the Malay Peninsula in southeast Asia. It is known for its impressive plumage and courtship behavior. It is not to be confused with the two species of closely related crested argus, genus Rheinardia. Carl Linnaeus gave the great argus its specific name (from which its common name and genus name are derived) because of the intricate eye-like patterns on its wings, in reference to Argus, a hundred-eyed giant in Greek mythology. There are two subspecies recognized: Nominate argus of the Malay peninsula and Sumatra, and A. a. grayi of Borneo. William Beebe considered the two races to be distinct species, but they have since been lumped.
No audio on this page yet
We only publish recordings we may use commercially, because this site is supported by ads. xeno-canto lists 105 recordings for this species: 5 CC BY-NC-ND · 4 CC BY-NC-SA. None of them permits commercial use, so there is no player here — the page is kept as a profile so the bird is not missing from the guide.
As soon as someone uploads a freely licensed recording, we mirror it and the player appears here.
Listed as recorded in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand in the xeno-canto catalogue.
Other birds you can hear here
- Ashy DrongoDicrurus leucophaeusrecording
- Asian KoelEudynamys scolopaceusrecording
- Banded Bay CuckooCacomantis sonneratiirecording
- Barn SwallowHirundo rusticarecording
- Black-crowned Night HeronNycticorax nycticoraxrecording
- Black-hooded OrioleOriolus xanthornusrecording
These are the birds recorded alongside it, not close relatives — the site holds no other member of its genus or family yet.