Male of hybrid stock inPoland Note thin white neck-band due to a ring-necked subspecies' contribution to hybridgene pool
Thecommon pheasant (Phasianus colchicus),ring-necked pheasant, orblue-headed pheasant, is a bird in thepheasantfamily (Phasianidae). The genus name comes fromLatinphasianus 'pheasant'. The species namecolchicus isLatin for 'ofColchis' (modern dayGeorgia), a country on theBlack Sea where pheasants became known to Europeans.[2] AlthoughPhasianus was previously thought to be closely related to the genusGallus, the genus ofjunglefowl and domesticatedchickens, recent studies show that they are in different subfamilies, having diverged over 20 million years ago.[3][4]
It is native to Asia, where it is widespread, and also the extreme southeast of Europe in the northern foothills of the Caucasus Mountains. It has been widely introduced elsewhere as agame bird. In parts of its range, mainly in places where none of its relatives occur such as in Europe, where it is naturalised, it is simply known as the "pheasant".Ring-necked pheasant is both the collective name for a number ofsubspecies and their intergrades that have white neck rings, and the name used for the species as a whole in North America.
It is a well-knowngamebird, among those of more than regional importance perhaps the most widespread and ancient one in the whole world. The common pheasant is one of the world's most hunted birds;[5] it has been introduced for that purpose to many regions, and is also common on game farms where it is commercially bred. The ring-necked subspecies group in particular are commonly bred and were introduced to many parts of the world; the game farm stock, though no distinctbreeds have been developed yet, can be considered semi-domesticated. The ring-necked pheasant is thestate bird ofSouth Dakota, one of only two US state birds that is not a species native to the United States.
Thegreen pheasant (P. versicolor) of Japan is sometimes considered a subspecies of the common pheasant. Though the species produce fertilehybrids wherever they coexist, this is simply a typical feature amongfowl (Galloanseres), in which postzygoticisolating mechanisms are slight compared to most other birds. The species apparently have somewhat differentecological requirements and at least in its typical habitat, the green pheasant outcompetes the common pheasant. The introduction of the latter to Japan has therefore largely failed.
There are many colour forms of the male common pheasant, ranging in colour from nearly white to almost black in some melanistic examples. These are due to captive breeding andhybridisation betweensubspecies and with the green pheasant, reinforced by continual releases of stock from varying sources to the wild. For example, the "ring-necked pheasants" common in Europe, North America and Australia do not pertain to any specifictaxon, they rather represent a stereotyped hybrid swarm.[6] Body weight can range from 0.5 to 3 kg (1 to 7 lb), with males averaging 1.2 kg (2 lb 10 oz) and females averaging 0.9 kg (2 lb 0 oz).[7] Wingspan ranges from 56–86 cm (22–34 in).[8]
The adult male common pheasant of thenominate subspeciesPhasianus colchicus colchicus is 60–89 cm (23+1⁄2–35 in) in length with a long brown streaked black tail, accounting for almost 50 cm (20 in) of the total length. The body plumage is barred bright gold or fiery copper-red and chestnut-brownplumage with iridescent sheen of green and purple; but rump uniform is sometimes blue. The wing coverage is white or cream and black-barred markings are common on the tail.[9] The head is bottle green with a smallcrest and distinctive redwattle.P. c. colchicus and some other races lack a white neck ring.[10] Behind the face are two ear-tufts, that make the pheasant appear more alert.[11]
The female (hen) and juveniles aremuch less showy, with a duller mottled brown plumage all over and measuring50–63 cm (19+1⁄2–25 in) long including a tail of around 20 cm (8 in). Juvenile birds have the appearance of the female with a shorter tail until young males begin to grow characteristic bright feathers on the breast, head and back at about 10 weeks after hatching.[9]
Thegreen pheasant (P. versicolor) is very similar, and hybridisation often makes the identity of individual farmed birds difficult to determine. Green pheasant males on average have a shorter tail than the common pheasant and have darker plumage that is uniformly bottle-green on the breast and belly; they always lack a neck ring. Green pheasant females are darker, with many black dots on the breast and belly.
In addition, various colourmutations are commonly encountered, mainlymelanistic (black) and flavistic (isabelline orfawn) specimens. The former are rather commonly released in some areas and are named "tenebrosus pheasant"[citation needed] or simply "melanistic mutant".[12]
Hybrid male in Europe, intermediate between Mongolian ringneck and Caucasus groupphenotype
This species was first scientifically described byCarl Linnaeus in his landmark 175810th edition ofSystema Naturae under its current scientific name. The common pheasant is distinct enough from any other species known to Linnaeus for a laconic[Phasianus] rufus, capîte caeruleo, "a red pheasant with blue head", to serve as entirely sufficient description. The bird had been extensively discussed before Linnaeus establishedbinomial nomenclature so was already well-known. His sources are theOrnithologia ofUlisse Aldrovandi,[13]Giovanni Pietro Olina'sUccelliera,[14]John Ray'sSynopsis methodica Avium & Piscium,[15] andA Natural History of the Birds byEleazar Albin.[16] Therein—essentially the bulk of theornithology textbooks of his day—the species is simply named "the pheasant" in the books' respective languages. Whereas in most other species, Linnaeus felt it warranted to cite plumage details from his sources, in the common pheasant's case he simply referred to the reason of the bird's fame:principum mensis dicatur.[verification needed] Thetype locality is given simply as "Africa, Asia".[17]
However, the bird does not occur in Africa, except perhaps in Linnaeus's time inMediterranean coastal areas where they might have been introduced during theRoman Empire. The type locality was later fixed to theRioni River in westernGeorgia, known asPhasis to theAncient Greeks. These birds, until themodern era, constituted the bulk of the introduced stock in parts of Europe that was not already present; the birds described by Linnaeus's sources, though typically belonging to such early introductions, would certainly have morealleles in common with thetranscaucasian population than with others. Thescientific name isLatin for "pheasant fromColchis",colchicus referring to the west of modern-dayGeorgia;[18] the Ancient Greek term corresponding to the English "pheasant" isPhasianos ornis (Φασιανὸς ὂρνις), "bird of the river Phasis".[19] Although Linnaeus included manyGalliformes in hisgenusPhasianius such as thedomestic chicken and its wild ancestor thered junglefowl, nowadaysGallus gallus, today only the common and the green pheasant are placed in this genus. As the latter was not known to Linnaeus in 1758, the common pheasant is treated as thetype species ofPhasianus.
In the US, common pheasants are widely known as "ring-necked pheasants". One North American writer called them"chinks" or, inMontana,"phezzens".[20] In China, meanwhile, the species is properly calledzhi ji (雉鸡), "pheasant-fowl", essentially implying the same as the English name "common pheasant". As elsewhere,P. colchicus is such a familiar bird in China that it is usually just referred to asshan ji (山雞), "mountain chicken",[21] a Chinese term forpheasants in general.
As of 2005, it had the smallest knowngenome of all livingamniotes, only 0.97 pg (970 millionbase pairs), roughly one-third of the human genome's size; however, theblack-chinned hummingbird is the current holder of the smallest known amniote genome.[22]
Chinese ringneck-type male (note grey rump) with very pale female, illustrating the dramatic difference in both colour and size between sexes as persexual dimorphism
There are about 30subspecies in five[23] to eight[24] groups. These can be identified by the male plumage, namely presence or absence of a white neck-ring and/or a whitesuperciliary stripe, the colour of the uppertail (rump) and wingcoverts, and the colour of crown, chest, upper back, and flank feathers. As noted above, introduced populations have mixed thealleles of various races by various amounts, differing according to the original stock used for introductions and whatnatural selection according toclimate andhabitat has made of that.
An investigation into the genetic relationships of subspecies suggested that the common pheasant originated from the forests of southeastern China.[25] Initial divergence is thought to have occurred around 3.4 Mya. The lack of agreement between morphology-based subspecies delimitation and their genetic relationships is thought to be attributed to past isolation followed by more recent population mixing as the pheasant has expanded its range across the Palaearctic.[26]
Sometimes this species is split into theCentral Asian common and theEast Asian ring-necked pheasants, roughly separated by thearid and highmountainous regions ofTurkestan. However, while the western and eastern populations probably were entirely separate during theZyryanka glaciation when deserts were more extensive,[27] this separation was not long enough for actualspeciation to occur. Today, the largest variety of colour patterns is found where the western and eastern populations mix, as is to be expected. Females usually cannot be identified even to subspecies group with certainty.
Many subspecies are in danger of disappearing due to hybridisation with introduced birds. The last black-necked pheasant (P. c. colchicus) population in Europe survives in Greece in the delta of the riverNestos, where in 2012 the population was estimated 100–250 individuals.[26]
The subspecies groups,[24] going from west to east, and some notable subspecies are:
Subspecies
Range
Description
Image
WESTERN CLADE – Red-rumped pheasants:
The lower back, rump, and upper tail-coverts are of a bronze-red, maroon, or rusty-orange general colour, sometimes glossed with oily green; black bars on the tail generally narrow.
P. c. colchicus group – Black-necked pheasants: P. c. colchicus, P. c. septentrionalis, P. c. talischensis, P. c. persicus
No neck ring. Wing covertsbuff to brown (inP. c. persicus greyish white or buffy white), uppertail covertsrusty tochestnut
P. c. chrysomelas / P. c. principalis group – White-winged pheasants: P. c. principalis, P. c. zarudnyi, P. c. zerafschanicus, P. c. bianchii, P. c. chrysomelas, P. c. shawii
No or vestigial neck ring. Wing coverts buff to brown, uppertail coverts darkkhaki to lightolive
EASTERN CLADE – Grey-rumped pheasants:
The lower back, rump, and upper tail-coverts are of a light and more or less lavender-blue, greenish- or yellowish-grey, or olive-greenish colour; a rusty orange patch on each side of the rump; black tail-bars generally broad.
P. c. elegans group – Yunnan pheasants: P. c. elegans, P. c. rothschildi
White neck collar and orbital lines are absent. A broad band of richly glossed dark green or bluish green colour runs down the underparts, completely separating the brassy-chestnut of the sides of the chest. Crown dark green. Uppertail coverts light bluish grey.
P. c. strauchi / P. c. vlangalii group – Western grey-rumped pheasants: P. c. suehschanensis, P. c. vlangalii, P. c. satscheuensis, P. c. edzinensis, P. c. strauchi, P. c. sohokhotensis, P. c. alaschanicus, P. c. kiangsuensis
The white neck collar and orbital lines are usually either absent (P. c. suehschanensis) or rather narrow, often not complete. Brassy-chestnut on chest dominating over glossy green colour (which only inP. c. suehschanensis reaches from foreneck to the belly). Crown usually dark green.
P. c. torquatus group – Chinese ring-necked pheasants: P. c. hagenbecki, P. c. pallasi, P. c. karpowi, P. c. torquatus, P. c. takatsukasae, P. c. decollatus
Widespread in eastern China, extending to northernmostVietnam in the south and to theStrait of Tartary region in the north; with an isolated population in north-western Mongolia. Absent fromHainan. Most pheasants introduced in North America are of this group.
White neck ring varies from broad in the north east (P. c. pallasi) to absent in the south west (P. c. decollatus). Wing covertstan to light grey (almost white in some). Chest copper red to light brown red, inP. c. decollatus rich purple red with thick black feather margins. Crown varying from dark green without orbital lines (P. c. decollatus) to light grey framed with white orbital lines. InP. c. hagenbecki chest feathers broadly fringed black.
P. c. formosanus group – Taiwan pheasants: P. c. formosanus
White neck ring interrupted at front neck. Flank feathers characteristically whitish or pure white with black apices and often narrow black margins. Feathers at chest broadly fringed black, giving a scaly appearance.
Plumage dominated by yellow and copper brown tones. Greyish green crown, framed by white orbital lines. White collar very wide and uninterrupted, often broader at the front.
Darker and more richly coloured thanP. c. pallasi, and white collar narrower.
P. c. elgans (Stone's pheasant)
Eastern Tibet, Western Sichuan, and Northwestern Yunnan provinces, 1,500–3,000 m preferred elevation.
Overall plumage dark and contrasting, but check to distinguish this subspecies fromP. c. suehschanensis which has some range overlap. Scaplulars are scarcely spotted when compared to those ofP. c. suehschanensis.
P. c. decollatus (Kweichow)
Central China ( Eastern Szechuan, Western Hubei, Northeastern Yunnan and Guizhou).
Appears likeP. c. torquatus but with no collar
P. c. takatsukasae (Tonkinese)
Southeastern China and Tonkin
Poorly known, best identified by range. Supposedly similar toP. c. torquatus but overall darker.
P. c. rothschildi (Rothschild's)
Yunnan, Tonkin, northern Laos and eastern Myanmar. Prefers elevations of 1,500 to 3,000 m
Similar toP. c. elegans but lighter. Best identified by range
P. c. torquatus (Chinese)
Eastern China
P. c. formosanus (Taiwanese)
Taiwan
Black belly and pale sides. Range is also diagnostic.
P. c. alaschanicus (Alashan)
North Central China, Southern Mongolia. "Oases near the western foothills of Ala-Shans".
Poorly known, best identified by range.
P. c. hagenbecki (Kobdo)
Kobdo Valley, Mongolia, prefers elevations of 1,000 to 1,500 m
Distinctive bright golden flanks as well as small range are diagnostic.
P. c. kiangsuensis (Shansi)
Northeastern China
Extremely similarP. c. torquatus, range overlaps, butP. c. kiangsuensis skews further north. The barring on the nape in finer inP. c. kiangsuensis than inP. c. torquatus.
P. c. satscheuensis (Satchu)
Northwestern Gansu
Best identified by range
P. c. strauchi (Strauch's)
Central China, Gansu south to Szechuan. Prefers altitudes near 3,000 m
Extremely variable, best identified by range and elimination of other subspecies.
P. c. suehschanensis (Sungpan)
Northwest Szechuan and Eastern Tibet
Similar to elegans
P. c. vlangallii
Quinghai, prefers elevations of 600 to 2,100 m
Best identified by range
P. c. edzinensis
Ruo Shui basin
Similar plumage toP. c. satscheuensis, best identified by range.
P. c. sohokhotensis (Sohokhoto)
Sohokhoto Oasis
ResemblesP. c. strauchi but paler with "eyebrows" and a collar.
P. c. tarimensis (Tarim basin)
Southeastern Tarim Basin
Olive-green rump
P. c. mongolicus (Mongolian/Kirghiz)
Northern Kyrgyzstan, Eastern Kazakhstan, Xinjiang and Urumchi.
Widespread in its range. Darkly plumaged with contrasting white wing coverts.
P. c turcestanicus (Syr-Darya)
Syr Darya river valley
Small range, darkly plumaged with contrasting white wing coverts, slightly brighter sides thanP. c. mongolicus.
P. c. bianchii
Southern Uzbekistan, southwestern Tajikistan and extreme northern Afghanistan
Bright white wing coverts, also use range.
P. c. principalis (Prince of Wales)
Southeastern Turkmenistan, extreme northern Iran and Afghanistan
Rare, identification information poorly known other than range, look for the contrasting green and purple-maroon throat.
P. c. shawii (Yarkland)
Xinjiang
Bright white wing coverts
P. c. zerafschanicus (Zerafshan)
Bukhara, Zeravshan and Kashkadarya Valleys of Southern Uzbekistan.
Best identified by range
P. c. zarudnyi (Zarundy's)
Central valleys of the river Amu Darya on the eastern Turkmenistan–Uzbekistan border.
Best identified by range and glossy-green throat.
P. c. colchicus (Caucasian)
Northeasternmost Turkey to eastern Georgia, eastern Azerbaijan, Dagestan, Armenia and northwestern Iran.
The most widespread of the "black-necked pheasants". Commonly released as a gamebird. Possibly the ancestral population of the "old English pheasant"
P. c. septentrionalis (Northern Caucasian)
Dagestan to north of the Volga Delta
Large, white spots on the back. Golden-orange nape that contrasts against the dark rump.
P. c. talischensis (Talisch)
Transcaucasia and Caspian lowlands of Iran
Fine, even white spots on the back, overall warm orange plumage, little contrast of wing plumage. Range important for identification.
P. c. persicus (Persian)
Southwest Turkmenistan and northcentral Iran
Overall warm orange plumage, wing plumage bright white and contrasting.
Within a maximum clade credibility mDNA gene tree, the most basal group is theP. c. elegans-group of the Eastern Clade, diverging from thegreen pheasant during theCalabrian, and diversifying inMiddle Pleistocene around 0.7 million years ago, with the groups of the Western Clade splitting off from those of the Eastern Clade about 0.59 million years ago.[24] While the subspecies of the Western Clade are well geographically separated from each other, the subspecies of the Eastern Clade often showclinal variation and large areas ofintergradation. For example, clines connectP. c. pallasi-karpowi-torquatus-takatsukasae within theP. c. torquatus group andP. c. kiangsuensis-alaschanicus-sohokhotensis-strauchi within theP. c. strauchi-vlangalii group, with the degree of expression of white collar andsuperciliary stripe in both cases decreasing from north to south. The isolated formP. c. hagenbecki is very close toP. c. pallasi in phenotype, and has been traditionally treated within theP. c. torquatus group until recently, when it was assigned in one study to theP. c. strauchi / P. c. vlangalii group.[24] However, the origin of the corresponding feather samples as listed in GenBank[32] is far away from the known distribution of subspeciesP. c. hagenbecki, and the issue needs further clarification.
Common pheasants are native to Asia and parts of Europe, their original range extending from the easternBlack Sea and theCaspian Sea toManchuria,Siberia,Korea, Mainland China, andTaiwan. The birds are found in woodland, farmland, scrub, and wetlands. In their natural habitat, common pheasants live in grassland near water with smallcopses of trees, and are tolerant of both dry and humid soils.[33][23] Extensively cleared farmland, however, is marginal habitat that cannot maintain self-sustaining populations for long.[34][35]
Common pheasants are gregarious birds and outside the breeding season form loose flocks. However, captive bred common pheasants can show strong sexual segregation, in space and time, with sex differences in the use of feeding stations throughout the day.[36] Wherever they are hunted they are always timid once they associate humans with danger, and will quickly retreat for safety after hearing the arrival of hunting parties in the area.[citation needed]
Chicks about one hour after hatching
While common pheasants are able short-distance fliers, they prefer to run. If startled however, they can suddenly burst upwards at great speed, with a distinctive "whirring" wing sound and often givingkok kok kok calls to alertconspecifics. Their flight speed is only 43–61 km/h (23–33 kn) when cruising but when chased they can fly up to 90 km/h (49 kn).
Common pheasants nest solely on the ground in scrapes, lined with some grass and leaves, frequently under dense cover or a hedge. Occasionally they will nest in a haystack, or old nest left by other bird. They roost in sheltered trees at night. The males arepolygynous as is typical for many Phasianidae, and are often accompanied by a harem of several females.[37]
Breeding beings in April. Hens scrape a hollow in the ground lined with grass and dead leaves, in which they lay a clutch of eight to fifteen eggs. These are brown-olive in colour. The hen afterwards incubates them twenty-three to twenty-five days.[38] The chicks stay near the hen for several weeks, yet leave the nest when only a few hours old. After hatching they grow quickly, flying after 12–14 days, resembling adults by only 15 weeks of age.[citation needed]
They eat a wide variety of animal and vegetable type-food. Vegetable forage includes fruit, seeds, grain, mast, berries and leaves, while animal food includes a wide range ofinvertebrates, such asslugs,earthworms,leatherjackets, ant eggs,wireworms,caterpillars,grasshoppers and other insects.[38][10] Smallvertebrates like lizards, field voles, small mammals and small birds are occasionally taken.[10]
Southern Caucasian pheasants (P. c. colchicus) were common in Greece during the classical period and it is a widespread myth that the Greeks took pheasants to theBalkans when they colonised Colchis in theCaucasus. This colonization happened during the 6th century BC, but pheasant archaeological remains in the Balkans are much older dating to 6th millennium BC. This fact indicates that probably pheasants reached the area naturally.[39][40] Additionally it seems that they had a continuous range in Turkey from the Sea of Marmara on the edge of the Balkans, across the northern shore of the country till Caucasus.[41] The last remnants of the Balkan population survive in the Kotza-Orman riparian forest of Nestos, inGreece with an estimated population of 100–200 adult birds.[42] InBulgaria they were lost in the 1970s because they hybridised with introduced eastern subspecies.[43]
Besides the Balkans the species lives in Europe in the area north of Caucasus where the local subspeciesP.c.septentrionalis survives pure around the lower reaches of the Samur River. Reintroduction efforts in the rest of the north Caucasian range may include hybrid birds.[44]
Common pheasants can now be found across the globe due to their readiness to breed in captivity and the fact that they can naturalise in many climates, but are known to be introduced in Europe, North America,Japan andNew Zealand. Pheasants were hunted in their natural range byStone Age humans just like thegrouse,partridges,junglefowls and perhapspeafowls that inhabited Europe at that time.[citation needed] The common pheasant was originally introduced to Europe during theRoman period. Recipes for preparing pheasant meat were discussed byMarcus Gavius Apicius in the first century AD; pheasant husbandry is also discussed byColumella in the same century and, based on the former's writings, byRutilius Taurus Aemilianus Palladius inDe Re Rustica in 350 AD.[38]
The bird was naturalized inGreat Britain around AD 1059, but may have been introduced by theRomano-British centuries earlier.[45] It was the Caucasian subspecies mistakenly known as the 'Old English pheasant' rather than the Chinese ring-necked pheasants (torquatus) that were introduced to Britain.[46] But it becameextirpated from most of the isles in the early 17th century. There were further re-introductions of the 'white neck-ringed' variety in the 18th century. It was rediscovered as a game bird in the 1830s after being ignored for many years in an amalgam of forms. Since then it has been reared extensively bygamekeepers and was shot in season from 1 October to 31 January. Pheasants are well adapted to the British climate and breed naturally in the wild without human supervision in copses, heaths and commons.[citation needed] Imported stock has originated from a number of other subspecies in addition tocolchicus andtorquatus, including the Prince of Wales pheasant (P. c. principalis), the Mongolian pheasant (P. c. mongolicus), the Satchu pheasant (P. c. satscheuensis), and Pallas's pheasant (P. c. pallasi), alongside the relatedgreen pheasant. Extensive interbreeding has occurred between these stocks, so that most British pheasants are of mixed heritage and display an at least partial neck ring and the "Old English" type is not encountered in its original form. Common British phenotypes include a cream-colored variant termed the Bohemian pheasant and a melanistic form derived from green pheasant ancestry.[38][33]
The first mentions of pheasants in Scotland occur in the late sixteenth century, although they did not penetrate as far as theScottish Highlands until the nineteenth, when a cock was recorded in theGrampian Mountains in 1826.[33] By 1950 pheasants bred throughout the British Isles, although they were scarce inIreland. Because around 30,000,000 pheasants are released each year on shooting estates, mainly in theMidlands and South of England, it is widespread in distribution, although most released birds survive less than a year in the wild. The Bohemian was most likely seen inNorth Norfolk.[47] TheGame & Wildlife Conservation Trust is researching the breeding success of reared pheasants and trying to find ways to improve this breeding success to reduce the demand to release as many reared pheasants and increase the wild population. As the original Caucasian stock all but disappeared during the Early Modern era, most 'dark-winged ringless' birds in the UK are actually descended from 'Chinese ring-necked' and 'green pheasant' hybrids,[48] which were commonly used for rewilding.[citation needed]
A close up of the head and body of a common pheasant
Common pheasants were introduced in North America beginning in 1773,[49] with the first large-scale successful introduction occurring in 1881 in theWilliamette Valley ofOregon, followed byWashington in 1883 andCalifornia in 1889. Stocking of large pheasant populations in the plains and eastern states occurred in following decades after successful hunting seasons were recorded in the western states.[50] Pheasants have become well established throughout much of theRocky Mountain states (Colorado,Idaho,Montana,Wyoming, etc.), theMidwest, thePlains states, as well asCanada andMexico.[51][52] In the southwest, they can even be seen south of the Rockies inBosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge 161 km (100 mi) south of Albuquerque, New Mexico.[53][54] The largest populations of pheasants in the United States occur in a continuous belt over theGreat Plains, theCorn Belt and theWheat Belt, with extensions of its range reaching into southernCanada and the farmland areas ofNew England. Smaller populations occur in valleys and irrigated areas through theIntermountain West and the coast states, although these are separated by high mountain areas inhospitable to pheasants. Introductions failed in the more humid Southern states and in theAmerican Southwest.[50]
Most common pheasants bagged in the United States are wild-born feral pheasants.[citation needed] In some states[55] captive-reared and released birds make up much of the population.[56]
Pheasant hunting is very popular in much of the US, especially in the Great Plains states, where a mix of farmland and native grasslands provides ideal habitat. South Dakota alone has an annual harvest of over 1 million birds a year by over 200,000 hunters.[57]
There are a number of negative effects of common pheasants on other game birds, including:nest parasitism, disease, aggression, and competition for resources.[58] Nest parasitism, orbrood parasitism, is common in pheasants because of their propensity to nest near other birds and the fact that nesting requirements are similar to those of other prairie birds andwaterfowl that inhabit the same areas. This phenomenon has been observed ingrey partridges;prairie chickens; several types ofduck, rail,grouse,turkeys, and others.[58] Effects of nest parasitism may include abandonment of nests with a high proportion of foreign eggs, lower hatching rates, and lower numbers of eggs laid by the host species. Pheasant eggs also have a shorter incubation time than many of their nestmates, which may result in the individual watching over the nest to abandon her own eggs after the pheasants hatch, thinking that the remaining eggs are not viable.[58] Pheasants raised in other species' nests often imprint on their caretaker, which may result in them adopting atypical behaviour for their species. This is sometimes the cause of hybridisation of species as pheasants adopt the mating behaviour of their nest's host species.[58]
Pheasants often compete with other native birds for resources. Studies have shown that they can lead to decreased populations ofbobwhites andpartridges due to habitat and food competition.[59] Insects are a valuable food source for both pheasants and partridges and competition may lead to decreased populations of partridges.[60] Pheasants may also introduce disease, such asblackhead, to native populations. While pheasants tolerate the infection well, other birds such asruffed grouse,chukar, and grey partridge are highly susceptible.[61] Pheasants also have a tendency to harass or kill other birds. One study noted that in pheasant vs. prairie chicken interactions, the pheasants were victorious 78% of the time.[62]
A variety of management strategies have been suggested for areas that are home to species that are particularly threatened by pheasants, such as the prairie chickens and grey partridge. These strategies include mowing grass to decrease the nesting cover preferred by pheasants, decreasing pheasant roosting habitat, shooting pheasants in organised hunts, trapping and removing them from areas where there are high concentrations of birds of threatened species, and others.[63]
While pheasant populations are not in any danger, they have been decreasing in the United States over the last 30 years, largely in agricultural areas.[64] This is likely due to changes in farming practices, application ofpesticides,habitat fragmentation, and increased predation due to changes in crops grown. Many crops beneficial for pheasants (such asbarley) are not being farmed as much in favour of using the land for more lucrative crops, such as nut trees. Many of these new crops are detrimental to pheasant survival.[64] Pheasants prefer to nest in areas of significantherbaceous cover, such asperennial grasses, so many agricultural areas are not conducive to nesting anymore.[65] Pheasant hens also experience higher levels ofpredation in areas without patches of grassland.[66]
In the United Kingdom, about 50 million pheasants reared in captivity are now released each summer, a number which has significantly increased since the 1980s.[67] Most of these birds are shot during the open season (1 October to 1 February), and few survive for a year. The result is a wildly fluctuating population, from 50 million in July to less than 5 million in June.[68]
The indigenousPaiwan people of Taiwan adorn motifs of the bird (tiativ in their language) on beams of their homes.[69] Pheasant feathers are worn by commoners including skilled hunters even as far as elected politicians among Paiwan commoners in modern times, in contrast tomountain hawk-eagle feathers reserved for hereditary chiefs (mamazangilan).[70]
Common pheasants are bred to be hunted and are shot in great numbers in Europe, especially the UK, where they are shot on the traditional formal "driven shoot" principles, whereby paying guns have birds driven over them by beaters, and on smaller "rough shoots". The open season in the UK is 1 October – 1 February, under theGame Act 1831 (1 & 2 Will. 4. c. 32). Generally they are shot by hunters employinggun dogs to help find, flush and retrieve shot birds.Retrievers,spaniels andpointing breeds are used to hunt pheasants.
Thedoggerel "Up gets aguinea, bang goes a penny-halfpenny, and down comes ahalf a crown" reflects the expensive sport of 19th century driven shoots in Britain,[72] when pheasants were often shot for sport, rather than as food. It was a popular royal pastime in Britain to shoot common pheasants.King George V shot over 1,000 pheasants out of a total bag of 3,937 over a six-day period in December 1913 during a competition with a friend; however, he did not do enough to beat him.[48]
Common pheasants are traditionally a target of small gamepoachers in the UK. TheRoald Dahl novelDanny the Champion of the World featured a poacher (and his son) who lived in the UK and illegally hunted common pheasants.
Pheasant farming is a common practice and is frequently doneintensively, with serious adverse impacts on native species.[73] Birds are supplied both tohunting preserves/estates and restaurants, with smaller numbers being available for home cooks.
The carcasses were often hung for a time to improve the meat by slight decomposition, as with most other game. Modern cookery generally uses moistroasting and farm-raised female birds.
^Giudice, John H.; Ratti, John T.; Mlodinow, Steven G. (25 October 2022), Billerman, Shawn M.; Keeney, Brooke K.; Rodewald, Paul G.; Schulenberg, Thomas S. (eds.),"Ring-necked Pheasant (Phasianus colchicus)",Birds of the World, Cornell Lab of Ornithology,doi:10.2173/bow.rinphe1.01.1, retrieved16 July 2023
^Whiteside, M.A.; van Horik, J. O.; Langley, E.J.G.; Beardsworth, C. E.; Capstick, L.A.; Madden, J. R. (2019). "Patterns of association at feeder stations for Common Pheasants released into the wild: sexual segregation by space and time".Ibis.161 (2):325–336.doi:10.1111/ibi.12632.hdl:10871/33788.S2CID91133760.
^Fet, V. & A. Popov 2007: Biogeography and Ecology of Bulgaria. Springer.
^Sokos, C. & P. Birtsas 2014: The last indigenous black-necked pheasant population of Europe. G@lliformed 8: 13–22.
^Gürler, A. T., Bölükbaş, C. S., Pekmezci, G. Z., Umur, S. & M. Açıcı1 2012: Samsun'da Sülünlerde (Phasianus colchicus) Nekropsi ve Dışkı Bakısında Saptanan Helmintler. Turkiye Parazitol Derg 36: 222–227.
^Χανδρινός, Γιώργος (2009). "Φασιανός" [Black-necked Pheasant]. In Λεγάκις, Αναστάσιος; Μαραγκού, Παναγιώτα (eds.).Το Κόκκινο Βιβλίο των Απειλούμενων Ζώων της Ελλάδας [The Red Book of endangered animals of Greece](PDF) (in Greek). Αθήνα (Athens): Ελληνική Ζωολογική Εταιρεία (Hellenic Zoological Society). p. 243.ISBN978-960-85298-8-5. (summary for each species in English)
^Braasch, T., Pes, T., Michel, S. & H. Jacken 2011: The subspecies of the common pheasantPhasianus colchicus in the wild and captivity. International Journal of Galliformes Conservation 2: 6–13.
^Kayvanfar, N., Aliabadian, M., Niu, X., Zhang, Z. & Y. Liu 2017: Phylogeography of the Common PheasantPhasianus colchicus. Ibis 159: 430–442.
^Farm, MacFarlane Pheasants - Pheasant Chicks, Mature Birds, America's Largest Pheasant."Pheasant History and Facts".www.pheasant.com. Retrieved10 March 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^"Pheasant"(PDF).gfp.sd.gov. South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks. Retrieved10 March 2013.
^abcdHallett, Diana L.; Edwards, William R.; Burger, George V. (1988).Pheasants: symptoms of wildlife problems on agricultural lands. North Central Section of the Wildlife Society.OCLC19288751.
^Lund, Everett E.; Chute, Anne M. (January 1972). "The Ring-Necked Pheasant (Phasianus colchicus torquatus) as a Host for Heterakis gallinarum and Histomonas meleagridis".American Midland Naturalist.87 (1):1–7.doi:10.2307/2423877.ISSN0003-0031.JSTOR2423877.
^Vance, D.Russel; Westemeier, Ronald L. (1979).Interactions of Pheasants and Prairie Chickens in Illinois.OCLC870462218.
^Westemeier, R. L. (1983).Perdix III: gray partridge/ring-necked pheasant workshop. Madison, WI: Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. pp. 117–122.
^Schmitz, Richard A.; Clark, William R. (January 1999). "Survival of Ring-Necked Pheasant Hens during Spring in Relation to Landscape Features".The Journal of Wildlife Management.63 (1): 147.doi:10.2307/3802495.ISSN0022-541X.JSTOR3802495.
Madge, Steve; McGowan, Philip J.K.; Kirwan, Guy M. (2002).Pheasants, partridges and grouse: a guide to the pheasants, partridges, quails, grouse, guineafowl, buttonquails and sandgrouse of the world. London:Christopher Helm.ISBN978-0-7136-3966-7.
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