The state bird of Uttarakhand is the Himalayan monal (Lophophorus impejanus). It is also called the Impeyan monal, and locally in Uttarakhand it is simply known as "monal. The state bird of Rajasthan is a different species, the Great Indian Bustard Impeyan monal. " This is the official designation confirmed by the Government of Uttarakhand, the Zoological Survey of India's Fauna of Uttarakhand volume, and consistent with every major state-symbol reference for the state.
State Bird of Uttarakhand: Which Bird It Is
Marcus Webb
10 Jun 2026
How to recognize the Himalayan monal
The male Himalayan monal is one of the most visually striking pheasants in the world, and once you've seen one, you won't confuse it with anything else. The adult male has a long, metallic green crest and a body covered in iridescent blue, copper, purple, and green plumage. The effect in sunlight is almost jewel-like. The female is considerably more subdued, with brownish-black feathers, but she has her own clear field marks: a prominent white stripe on the tail and a white patch on the throat.
In terms of habitat, the Himalayan monal lives in Himalayan forests and shrublands at elevations typically between 2,100 and 4,500 meters above sea level. It favors open coniferous and mixed forests, often with rhododendron and bamboo undergrowth. If you spot a large, brilliantly colored pheasant in the high-altitude forests of Uttarakhand, you are almost certainly looking at this species. The scientific name Lophophorus impejanus (Latham, 1790) is the binomial to match against any state-symbol text you find.
Why Uttarakhand chose the monal as its state bird
The Himalayan monal is about as representative of Uttarakhand's high-altitude ecology as a bird can be. The state is defined by its Himalayan geography, and the monal is one of the most iconic and immediately recognizable species of that landscape. Its presence is tightly tied to the alpine and subalpine forests that cover much of the state's upper reaches, making it a natural emblem of the region's biodiversity.
Beyond ecology, the monal carries genuine cultural weight across the broader Himalayan region. In neighboring Nepal, it is called "danphe" or "danfe" and is that country's national bird, which speaks to how deeply embedded the species is in Himalayan identity. In Uttarakhand, the monal's local name and its dazzling appearance make it a bird that local communities know and recognize. Conservation researchers also treat it as a priority species: the Garhwal Himalayas studies flag it as facing pressure from habitat change and exploitation, which gives its state-bird status added practical significance as a conservation signal.
When Uttarakhand officially adopted its state symbols
Uttarakhand was carved out of Uttar Pradesh and became a separate state on November 9, 2000. The state's official biological symbols, including the Himalayan monal as state bird, were adopted around the time of the state's establishment. This is where the question "which is punjab state bird" comes in, because Punjab has its own official state bird as well Himalayan monal as state bird. A 2019 Times of India report references forest department conservation actions specifically tied to the "state bird of Uttarakhand, Himalayan Monal," which confirms the designation has been actively applied in official policy and conservation discourse well beyond its initial adoption. The Zoological Survey of India's government-hosted Fauna of Uttarakhand volume also explicitly identifies the species as "the State bird of Uttarakhand," giving the designation firm institutional footing.
Does any other Indian state share this bird?
Yes. Himachal Pradesh also designates the Himalayan monal (Lophophorus impejanus) as its state bird. Both states share a Himalayan geography and the same iconic species, which makes logical sense given that the bird's range spans those high-altitude forests without regard for administrative borders. This is worth knowing because it is one of the more common shared-bird situations among Indian states, comparable to how several American states share the same state bird. The scientific name remains the same in both cases, so there is no ambiguity about which monal species is meant. It is not the Chinese monal or any other Lophophorus species; it is specifically Lophophorus impejanus.
Indian state birds that share the Himalayan monal designation
| State | State Bird | Scientific Name |
|---|---|---|
| Uttarakhand | Himalayan monal | Lophophorus impejanus |
| Himachal Pradesh | Himalayan monal | Lophophorus impejanus |
How to confirm the designation yourself
If you want to verify this independently, the most authoritative route is the Fauna of Uttarakhand (State Fauna Series, Volume 18), published by the Zoological Survey of India and hosted on faunaofindia.nic.in. It is a government-produced reference that explicitly names Lophophorus impejanus as the state bird. For a quick cross-check on the species itself, the BNHS Envis checklist for Uttarakhand birds ties "Himalayan Monal / Impeyan Monal" to the same binomial, confirming the spelling and taxonomy. Avibase's entry for Lophophorus impejanus provides the typical elevation range (2,100 to 4,500 m) and habitat context, which you can use to verify any field observation you're trying to pin down.
Other Indian states have their own equally interesting official birds. To learn the same for Odisha, you can look up the official state bird designation for Odisha specifically. Sikkim's state bird is the blood pheasant, also a high-altitude Himalayan species, while Arunachal Pradesh claims the great hornbill. The great hornbill is the state bird of Arunachal Pradesh Arunachal Pradesh claims the great hornbill. The what is the state bird of sikkim is the blood pheasant Sikkim's state bird. If you're exploring Indian state bird designations more broadly, the pattern of Himalayan states choosing mountain pheasants and raptor-rich states choosing birds of prey is a useful frame for understanding how these symbols get picked. For the neighboring state of Assam, you can similarly look up its official state bird to see which species represents its wildlife identity Assam's official state bird. Uttarakhand's choice of the monal fits squarely into that logic. The state bird of Jharkhand is the Indian cuckoo Indian cuckoo (state bird of Jharkhand).
FAQ
If I see a pheasant in Uttarakhand, how can I tell it is the Himalayan monal and not a different bird?
Focus on the adult male’s metallic green crest and multi-colored, jewel-like body sheen in sunlight. The female is more brown-black but still shows a clear white stripe on the tail and a white throat patch, which are strong field marks for the Himalayan monal.
Is Uttarakhand’s state bird definitely the Himalayan monal, and not a similarly named monal species?
Yes, the official state-bird designation is Lophophorus impejanus, also called Impeyan monal. It is not the Chinese monal or any other Lophophorus species, so taxonomy and the scientific name are the safest way to confirm.
Do other Himalayan states use the same state bird as Uttarakhand?
Himachal Pradesh also designates the Himalayan monal (Lophophorus impejanus) as its state bird. Because the bird’s range crosses high-altitude habitats across administrative borders, shared-symbol cases like this happen in mountain regions.
What elevation range should I expect if I’m trying to spot the Himalayan monal in Uttarakhand?
Typical observations are at roughly 2,100 to 4,500 meters. If you are much lower than that or in lowland habitat, the chances drop sharply, even if the bird looks superficially pheasant-like.
Where in the landscape is the Himalayan monal most likely to be found?
Look for high-altitude forests and shrublands, especially open coniferous or mixed forests with rhododendron and bamboo undergrowth. Spotting it in dense, low-elevation tropical-looking areas is uncommon for this species.
Does the state bird designation depend on Uttarakhand’s district boundaries or specific regions within the state?
No, it is a state-level official symbol, so it does not change by district. However, the bird’s local presence does vary with suitable alpine and subalpine habitat within Uttarakhand.
How can I verify the state bird claim quickly without relying on second-hand summaries?
Use the Zoological Survey of India reference that explicitly identifies the state bird, and check that it names Lophophorus impejanus as the Himalayan monal. For field-level confirmation, a bird checklist that ties the same common name to the same scientific name can also help.
Why does the same bird get called different names across the Himalayas?
Common names vary by language and region. In Nepal it is known as danphe/danfe, while in Uttarakhand it is commonly referred to as monal or Impeyan monal, but these refer to the same species when the scientific name matches.
Citations
Uttarakhand’s state bird is listed as “Himalayan monal (Lophophorus impejanus)”. (This page attributes the state-symbol source to the Government of Uttarakhand’s official website, though the table itself is on Wikipedia.)
List of Uttarakhand state symbols (Wikipedia) - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Uttarakhand_state_symbols
The Uttarakhand article’s “State symbols” section lists the state bird as “Himalayan monal (Lophophorus impejanus)”. This provides an explicit English name + binomial for the bird.
Uttarakhand (Wikipedia) - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uttarakhand
Fauna of India’s Uttarakhand state fauna volume treats “Lophophorus impejanus (Latham, 1790)” / “Impeyan Monal” as the Himalayan monal and includes the remark that it is “the State bird of Uttarakhand.” (This is a government-hosted, national reference PDF.)
Fauna of Uttarakhand, State Fauna Series, 18 (faunaofindia.nic.in PDF) - https://faunaofindia.nic.in/PDFVolumes/sfs/062/index.pdf
The BNHS/Envis checklist includes “Himalayan Monal” with alternate name “Impeyan Monal” and scientific name “Lophophorus impejanus,” which is useful to confirm spelling/binomial consistency for the Uttarakhand symbol bird.
An Updated Checklist of the Birds of Uttarakhand (BNHS Envis / bnhsenvis.nic.in PDF, “Mohan & Sondhi 2015” checklist) - https://www.bnhsenvis.nic.in/WriteReadData/CMS/An%20Updated%20Checklist%20of%20Birds%20of%20Uttarakhand%20Mohan%20%26%20Sondhi%202015.pdf
This scientific article explicitly states: “The Himalayan Monal (Lophophorus impejanus), state bird of Uttarakhand state is also the national bird of Nepal.” (It clearly identifies the state bird as the Himalayan monal species.)
Status, distribution, and aspects of ecology of monal (Lophorus impeyanus) in Garhwal Himalayas, Uttarakhand, India (International Journal of Fauna and Biological Studies PDF) - https://www.faunajournal.com/archives/2022.v9.i4.A.913/status-distribution-and-aspects-of-ecology-of-monal-lophorus-impeyanus-in-garhwal-himalayas-uttarakhand-india
The Himalayan monal entry describes “Lophophorus impejanus” as the “state bird of Uttarakhand, India, where it is known as a monal,” explicitly linking the “Monal” local name to the same scientific species.
Himalayan monal (Wikipedia) - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Himalayan_monal
This conservation/planning paper describes the “Himalayan monal (Lophophorus impejanus)” as the species and notes it is “iconic” and of conservation importance—useful when discussing why Uttarakhand’s symbol bird is a distinctive, recognizable species rather than an unspecified “monal” group.
Understanding distribution and occupancy of Himalayan monal in Uttarkashi district, Uttarakhand (Wiley Online Library) - https://nsojournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/wlb3.01013
The Fauna of India Uttarakhand volume provides taxonomic/biological reference context for “Lophophorus impejanus” (Himalayan monal/Impeyan monal), which you can use to confirm you’re identifying the correct species within the monal “types.”
Fauna of Uttarakhand, State Fauna Series, 18 (faunaofindia.nic.in PDF) - https://faunaofindia.nic.in/PDFVolumes/sfs/062/index.pdf
The Indianbirds description provides distinctive ID cues and notes sexual differences: males have multicolored plumage including a “metallic green crest” and coppery feathers; females are more subdued with a prominent “white strip on the tail” and a “white patch on the throat.”
Himalayan monal (Lophophorus impejanus) | Birds of India | Indianbirds.thedynamicnature.com - https://indianbirds.thedynamicnature.com/2014/11/himalayan-monal-lophophorus-impejanus.html
The Banko Janakari paper describes the male’s striking sexual dimorphism: “Long crest and metallic blue, copper, purple and green plumage” in adult males, while females have “more subdued” brownish-black feathers—supporting plumage-based field identification.
Status, distribution, and threats of Himalayan Monal (Lophophorus impejanus) in Sagarmatha National Park (Banko Janakari PDF on snp.gov.np) - https://www.snp.gov.np/uploads/download/1709649160.pdf
The Himalayan monal entry states it is a bird of Himalayan forests and shrublands and provides habitat context; it is useful as a quick cross-check when narrowing an unknown monal to the likely Uttarakhand species.
Himalayan monal (Wikipedia) - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Himalayan_monal
Avibase gives a habitat/elevation range for “Himalayan Monal” as “Himalayan forests and shrublands at elevations of 2,100–4,500 m,” which helps confirm you’ve identified the right species by matching the bird’s typical altitude.
Lophophorus impejanus (Himalayan Monal) - Avibase - https://avibase.bsc-eoc.org/species.jsp?avibaseid=F57FA4371F4DA7CE
The InsightsIAS study material states Himalayan monal is a “high-altitude bird” remaining between “2000 and 4500 meters above sea level,” and notes it prefers open, coniferous or mixed forests with rhododendron/bamboo—useful for quick habitat confirmation.
Insights IAS prelims booster: Himalayan monal (habitat) - https://www.insightsonindia.com/2018/04/27/prelims-booster-2018-himalayan-monal-impeyan-monal-impeyan-pheasant-and-mekong-ganga-cooperation-mgc/
The paper frames the Himalayan monal as a “conservation priority species” and discusses exploitation/declining populations due to threats—this supports the ecological conservation importance angle for why it is valued as a symbol.
Status, distribution, and aspects of ecology of monal (Lophorus impeyanus) in Garhwal Himalayas (International Journal of Fauna and Biological Studies) - https://www.faunajournal.com/archives/2022.v9.i4.A.913/status-distribution-and-aspects-of-ecology-of-monal-lophorus-impeyanus-in-garhwal-himalayas-uttarakhand-india
This paper explicitly connects the bird’s “iconic” status to conservation importance and management planning—supporting the rationale that it was chosen because it is a prominent, representative species of the high Himalaya.
Understanding distribution and occupancy of Himalayan monal in Uttarkashi district (Wiley Online Library) - https://nsojournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/wlb3.01013
The Himalayan monal is widely described as culturally important in Nepal (“danphe/danfe”) and as a well-known symbol bird; this can be leveraged to discuss broader cultural significance in the Himalayan region (while noting Uttarakhand uses the “monal” name locally).
Himalayan monal (Wikipedia) - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Himalayan_monal
This site claims Uttarakhand’s interim government adopted the official biological symbols “at the establishment of the state on 9 November 2000,” and it lists “Himalayan Monal (state bird)” among them—useful for the adoption/establishment timeline claim (but it is not itself an official gazette).
Symbols Of The Uttarakhand State - Humans Of Uttarakhand - https://www.humansofuttarakhand.com/symbols-of-the-uttarakhand-state/
Uttarakhand’s formation date is listed as “9 November 2000,” which helps anchor timeline discussions about when state symbols would plausibly have been set/implemented soon after statehood.
Uttarakhand (Wikipedia) - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uttarakhand
A Times of India report (2019) refers to the “state bird of Uttarakhand, Himalayan Monal (Lophorus Impejanus)” in the context of forest department conservation actions; this supports the claim that the symbol bird is actively treated as an official state bird in policy/conservation discourse.
Times of India: Uttarakhand’s state bird monal to be conserved with help from Himachal Pradesh (2019 article) - https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/dehradun/ukhands-state-bird-monal-to-be-conserved-with-himachal/articleshow/72099088.cms
This compilation page shows the Uttarakhand symbol bird entry (Himalayan monal / Lophophorus impejanus), which is helpful as a starting point when checking for shared usage across other states.
List of Uttarakhand state symbols (Wikipedia) - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Uttarakhand_state_symbols
Himachal Tourism states that the Himalayan monal is “the state bird of both Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand” (and notes it is called the “danphe” in Nepal and “monal” elsewhere). This supports cross-state sharing of the same species.
Wildlife in Himachal Pradesh – Himachal Tourism - https://www.himachaltourism.org/wildlife-in-himachal/
The “List of Indian state birds” table lists “Uttarakhand: Himalayan monal — Lophophorus impejanus,” helping you compare with other states’ entries to see if the same binomial is used.
State symbols of Uttarakhand on common wiki lists (List of Indian state birds) - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Indian_state_birds
This description explicitly says Himalayan monal is the state bird of “Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh,” providing a cross-check that both states refer to the same species (Lophophorus impejanus) for the “monal” symbol.
Himalayan monal | Birds of India | Indianbirds.thedynamicnature.com - https://indianbirds.thedynamicnature.com/2014/11/himalayan-monal-lophophorus-impejanus.html
Again confirms both states share the same state bird (Himalayan monal), which reduces confusion with similarly named “monal” birds that are actually other Lophophorus species.
Himachal Tourism: Wildlife in Himachal Pradesh - https://www.himachaltourism.org/wildlife-in-himachal/
As a “reliable confirmation” source: this government-hosted reference explicitly calls the Himalayan monal (Lophophorus impejanus) “the State bird of Uttarakhand,” and provides the scientific-name context needed to verify correct identification.
Fauna of Uttarakhand, State Fauna Series, 18 (faunaofindia.nic.in PDF) - https://faunaofindia.nic.in/PDFVolumes/sfs/062/index.pdf
For identification confirmation: this checklist ties “Himalayan Monal/Impeyan Monal” to “Lophophorus impejanus,” which is the binomial you should match against any state-symbol text you find.
An Updated Checklist of the Birds of Uttarakhand (bnhsenvis.nic.in PDF) - https://www.bnhsenvis.nic.in/WriteReadData/CMS/An%20Updated%20Checklist%20of%20Birds%20of%20Uttarakhand%20Mohan%20%26%20Sondhi%202015.pdf
For field/habitat confirmation: Avibase provides the typical elevation range (2,100–4,500 m) and location context, letting you check whether your observed bird fits the species’ known ecology.
Avibase: Lophophorus impejanus (Himalayan Monal) - https://avibase.bsc-eoc.org/species.jsp?avibaseid=F57FA4371F4DA7CE
A downloadable PDF re-lists Uttarakhand state symbols and includes “Bird: Himalayan Monal (Lophophorus impejanus).” While not an official gazette, it can be used as a quick visual cross-check when combined with more authoritative references above.
Uttarakhand State Symbols Emblem (PDF re-listing state symbols) - https://www.downloadexcelfiles.com/sites/default/files/docs/list_of_uttarakhand_state_symbols-2709j.pdf
