Common Pheasant

Phasianus colchicus colchicus

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Common Pheasant

“ A bird from Sakartvelo calls its home and was the most well-known for maintaining life until the introduction of the Chicken fowl. ”

– Eostre

Scientific Taxonomy & Character Information

Domain: Eukaryota

Kingdom: Chordata

Phylum: Animalia

Class: Reptilia

Order: Galliformes

Family: Phasianidae

Genius: Phasianus

Species: Phasianus colchicus

Subspecies: Phasianus colchicus colchicus

Descendant: phasianids

Named by: Carl Linnaeus

Year Published: 1758 (10th edition of Systema Naturae)

Size: 60–89 cm (23+1⁄2–35 in) in length; wingspan ranges from 56–86 cm (22–34 in); 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)

Lifespan: 1 - 27 years

Activity: Diurnal ☀️

Type(s):

Reptiles (Archosaurs)
- Birds (Phasianids)

Title(s):

The Pheasant
Bird of Colchis

Other Name(s)/Alias(es):

Ring-necked pheasant
Blue-headed pheasant

Pantheon(s): Terran/Gaian 🇺🇳

Time Period: Pliocene–Holocene

Alignment: Docile

Threat Level: ★★★

Diet: Omnivorous 🌱🐛

Element(s): Air 🌬️

Inflict(s): Airblight 🌬️, coccidiosis 💩

Weakness(es): Rock 🪨 (50% immune); electric ⚡; metal 🔩

Casualties: none

Based On: itself

Conservation Status: Least Concern (LC) – IUCN Red List

The Common Pheasant (Phasianus colchicus), Ring-necked Pheasant, or Blue-headed Pheasant, a bird in the pheasant family (Phasianidae).

Etymology

The genus name comes from Latin phasianus, "pheasant". The species name colchicus is Latin for "of Colchis" (modern day Georgia Republic), a country on the Black Sea where pheasants became known to Europeans.

Physical Appearance

Previously believed to be closely related to the genus Gallus, which includes domesticated chickens and junglefowl, Phasianus is now found to be in different subfamilies after diverging more than 20 million years ago, according to current research.

The male common pheasant comes in a variety of color variations, from virtually white to practically black in certain melanistic specimens. These are caused by hybridization and captive breeding between subspecies and the green pheasant, which are further supported by ongoing releases of stock into the wild from various sources. For instance, the "ring-necked pheasants" that are widespread in Europe, North America, and Australia are a stereotyped hybrid swarm rather than belonging to any particular taxon. Males typically weigh 1.2 kg (2 lb 10 oz) and females weigh 0.9 kg (2 lb 0 oz), with body weights ranging from 0.5 to 3 kg (1 to 7 lb). The range of wingspan is 56–86 cm (22–34 in).

With a long brown-streaked black tail that makes up nearly 50 cm (20 in) of its overall length, the mature male common pheasant of the nominate subspecies Phasianus colchicus colchicus measures 60–89 cm (23+1⁄2–35 in) in length. Although the rump uniform is occasionally blue, the body plumage is banded bright gold or flaming copper-red and chestnut-brown with iridescent sheens of green and purple. The wings are covered in white or cream, and the tail frequently has black bars. Bottle green in color, the head has a characteristic red wattle and a little crest. Some races, including Phasianus colchicus colchicus, do not have a white neck ring. The pheasant's two ear tufts behind its face increase its alertness.

White or cream covers the wings, and black bars frequently appear on the tail. Bottle green in color, the head has a characteristic red wattle and a little crest. The pheasant's two ear tufts behind its face increase its alertness. The juniors and females have duller mottled brown plumage and are far less ostentatious. Before young males start to develop distinctive bright feathers on the breast, head, and back around ten weeks after hatching, juvenile birds resemble females with shorter tails.

Furthermore, a variety of color mutations are frequently seen, primarily melanistic (black) and flavistic (isabelline or fawn) variations. The former, known as Tenebrosus pheasant (Phasianus colchicus var. tenebrosus), are rather widespread in some places.

Abilities

Common pheasants are gregarious birds and outside the breeding season form loose flocks. 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. Common pheasants are diurnal and spend most of their time on the ground. They are able to fly short distances but they prefer to run. If startled, however, they can suddenly burst upwards at great speed, with a distinctive "whirring" wing sound and often giving 'kok kok kok' calls to alert other members of the flock.

When cruising, their speed is only 43–61 km/h (27–38 mph), but when being pursued, they may reach up to 90 km/h (56 mph).

Weather Phenomenon

Coming soon

Ecology

Common pheasants 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 of invertebrates, such as slugs, earthworms, leatherjackets, ant eggs, wireworms, caterpillars, grasshoppers and other insects. Small vertebrates like lizards, field voles, small mammals and small birds are occasionally taken.

Common pheasants are native to Asia and parts of Europe, their original range extending from the eastern Black Sea and the Caspian Sea to Manchuria, Siberia, Korea, Mainland China, and Taiwan. The birds are found in woodland, farmland, scrub, and wetlands. In their natural habitat, common pheasants live in grassland near water with small copses of trees, and are tolerant of both dry and humid soils Extensively cleared farmland, however, is marginal habitat that cannot maintain self-sustaining populations for long.

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. 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.

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 are polygynous as is typical for many Phasianidae, and are often accompanied by a harem of several females. 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. 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.

Reproduction

Breeding system: usually polygynous (males may mate with multiple females); males defend territories or display to attract harems.
Nesting: ground scrape under cover; clutch size commonly 8–15 eggs; incubation ~23–25 days (female incubates); chicks precocial — leave the nest within hours and begin feeding but depend on mother for protection; young fledge/short flights within ~12–14 days and approach adult-like plumage in a few months.

Behavior

When not breeding, common pheasants are gregarious birds that gather in loose flocks. They get terrified when they are hunted once they recognize those who pose a threat, and they will quickly run for their lives if they hear hunting groups approaching. In general, common pheasants are cautious, but if they are fed frequently, they can become very amiable and gentle. Some of them even approach people for food and engage with pets. Although they are cautious by nature and would quickly run for shelter if disturbed, regular positive reinforcement through feeding can make them confident so they can be observed up close in fields and gardens.

Threats and Conservation

Threats

habitat loss (hedgerow removal, agricultural intensification)
predation
disease
hybridization threaten local and pure subspecies populations

Conservation Status

IUCN Red List: Least Concern (LC)

Conservation Efforts

Habitat protection.
Anti-poaching enforcement.
Rescue and rehabilitation centers.
Awareness campaigns against illegal pet trade.

Distribution and Habitat

Common pheasants can 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 and New Zealand. Pheasants were hunted in their natural range by Stone Age humans just like the grouse, partridges, junglefowls and perhaps peafowls that inhabited Europe at that time. Introductions in the Southern Hemisphere have mostly failed, except where local Galliformes or their ecological equivalents are rare or absent.

The common pheasant was originally introduced to Europe during the Roman period. Recipes for preparing pheasant meat were discussed by Marcus Gavius Apicius in the first century AD; pheasant husbandry is also discussed by Columella in the same century and, based on the former's writings, by Rutilius Taurus Aemilianus Palladius in De Re Rustica in 350 AD.

During The Recollections of Queen Arianna (TROQA) saga in the 2600s and 2700s, the "Sky People," or Terrans from Earth, brought the common pheasant to two exoplanets that resembled Earth: Berbania from Ursa Major and Reinachos from Cygnus. Despite the death of our planet, conservation efforts are helping this species recover from endangerment or near extinction. The dolphin became an invasive species as a result of human interactions for game hunting and rewilding. In two exoplanets that resembled Earth, the ring-necked pheasant lived in conditions and climates identical to those of Earth.

Movement Pattern: Migrant
Individual Type: Nomadic
Population Trend: none
Population: none
Locomotion: none
Habitat: Taiga; Montane Grasslands and Shrublands; Temperate Coniferous Forests; Temperate Broadleaf and Mixed Forests; Temperate Deciduous Forests; Temperate Grasslands, Savannas, and Shrublands; Subtropical Coniferous Forests; Subtropical Moist Broadleaf Forests; Subtropical Dry Broadleaf Forests; Subtropical Grasslands, Savannas, and Shrublands; Salt Flats; Stone Forest; Tropical Coniferous Forests; Tropical Moist Broadleaf Forests; Tropical Dry Broadleaf Forests; Tropical Grasslands; Tropical Savannas and Shrublands; Mediterranean Forests, Woodlands, and Scrub; Swamp; Bayous/Billabongs; Riparian; Cold Bamboo Forests; Tropical Bamboo Forests; Air-breathing Coral Reefs; Graveyard Vale; Mountain; Volcano; Warm Ghost Town; Cold Ghost Town; Ruined Skyscraper.
Earth:
- Extant (Resident): Afghanistan; Armenia; Azerbaijan; China; Georgia; Iran; Kazakhstan; North Korea; South Korea; Kyrgyzstan; Laos; Mongolia; Myanmar; Russia (Eastern Asian Russia); Taiwan; Tajikistan; Turkmenistan; Uzbekistan; Vietnam
- Extant & Introduced (Resident): Albania; Andorra; Australia; Austria; Bahamas; Belarus; Belgium; Bosnia and Herzegovina; Bulgaria; Canada; Croatia; Cuba; Czechia; Denmark; Finland; France; Germany; Greece; Hungary; Ireland; Italy; Latvia; Liechtenstein; Lithuania; Luxembourg; Moldova; Montenegro; Morocco; Netherlands; New Zealand; North Macedonia; Norway; Poland; Portugal; Romania; Russia (European Russia); Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha; Serbia; Slovakia; Slovenia; Spain; Sweden; Switzerland; Türkiye; Ukraine; United Kingdom; United States (Hawaiian Is.)
- Presence Uncertain & Introduced: Mexico; Puerto Rico
Berbania/Hirawhassa:
- Extant & Introduced (Resident): TBA
Reinachos/Ityosel:
- Extant & Introduced (Resident): TBA
Thatrollwa:
- Extant & Introduced (Resident): TBA
Sawintir:
- Extant & Introduced (Resident): TBD
Agarathos:
- Extant & Introduced (Resident): TBD

Tamed

Pheasants are not the best pets for people who desire cuddly, gregarious companion birds, but they are occasionally kept by hobbyists, small farms, and aviculturists (ornamental/chicken-like collections). The finest caretakers are those who can give them safe havens (they can fly and are prone to escape), a meal suitable for their species, and defense against predators. Legal and welfare issues (biosecurity, licensing, and gamebird release legislation) are present in many places. Pheasants are kept intensively in commercial game farms for both production and release. Adult pheasants frequently maintain their shyness; however, hand-raised pheasant chicks can be tamer. There are sources with husbandry guides for gamekeepers and hobbyists in the US and the UK.