Scientific name

Ithaginis cruentus (Hardwicke, 1821)

Common name

Blood pheasant

Sikkimese

Chillimey or semu

Distribution

Mountains of Nepal and Sikkim

Religious association

The blood pheasant is sacred to the Lepchas who are the aboriginal inhabitants of Sikkim. For the Lepcha hunter-gatherers of Sikkim, the blood pheasant is part of a sacred myth wherein the bird saved the Lepcha ancestors by guiding them to the safe environs of Mount Tendong during a terrible flood. The blood pheasant is the state bird of Sikkim.