Ring-necked Pheasants ( Phasianus colchicus)

1. Ring-necked Pheasants(Phasianus colchicus)

2. Scientific Classification • Kingdom: Animalia • Phylum: Chordata • Class: Aves • Order: Galliformes • Family: Phasianidae • Genus: Phasianus • Species: Phasianus colchicus

3. Description • Size: 50-70 cm (20-28 in) • Wingspan: 56-86 cm (22-34 in) • Weight: 500-3000 g (17.65-105.9 ounces) • Medium to large chicken-like bird. • Long tail, often held cocked up at an angle. • Wings rather long and rounded in flight.

4. Male Characteristics • Green head • Pale bill • Face red and bare • White ring around neck • Golden plumage with bluish and greenish iridescence and black spots scattered throughout body • Long, pointed golden tail feathers with black barring • Spurred legs

5. Female Characteristics • Buffy brown head and underparts • Dark brown back with paler edgings and centers • Black spots and bars scattered about head, neck and flanks • Long, buff-brown, pointed tail • Lacks spurs

6. Cool Facts • In very bad weather, pheasants are known to stay on a roost for several days without eating. • Pheasants practice "harem-defense polygyny" where one male keeps other males away from a small group of females during the breeding season. • Across the native range, about 34 races of the species are recognized. The Green Pheasant race is sometimes considered a different species. Multiple introductions of different races have been made in North America.

7. Habitat and Diet • Pheasants are usually found in areas with a mixture of grain fields, grasslands, and woodlands • They feed on a variety of seeds, insects, and berries • However, the majority of their diet consists of corn, wheat, oats, barley, and buckwheat

8. Mating Habits • Pheasants are polygynous • Starting in March, the males begin claiming their territories by crowing at its boundaries • In April, successful males will mate with several females • After mating, the female then looks for a nesting site in preparation of laying her eggs

9. Nests are well concealed usually in tall grass, and made up of leaves, grass, and breast feathers • 10 to 12 eggs are laid in total, but only one at a time • Incubation begins after all eggs are laid • Eggs will hatch after 21 to 24 days of incubation • One brood of young is raised per year • The new chicks are precocial (relatively mature and mobile) • 90% of a new chick’s diet can be insects, rich in protein • At two weeks of age chicks can make short flights, and reach adult size by October or November

10. Species Introduction

11. On March 13, 1881, around 60 Chinese Ring-necked Pheasants arrived in Port Townsend aboard the ship Otago • The United States consul general Owen Nickerson Denny and his wife Gertrude Jane Hall Denny had these birds along with other Chinese birds and plants shipped from Shanghai in hopes of establishing a population in their home state of Oregon Owen N. and Gertrude Hall Denny

12. Since they were living in Shanghai, the Dennys were unsure how the birds were doing on Sauvie Island near Portland, and decided to send more pheasants • In 1882, the Dennys sent more Ring-necked Pheasants and other Chinese birds directly to Portland • Owen’s brother John Denny released those near the family’s Willamette Valley homestead in Linn County • Within that year, the pheasants had spread to surrounding countries and since Denny had political connections, he won over the state legislation banning hunting until the population was sufficiently established • It wasn’t until 1892 that the first pheasant season took place • Hunters reportedly bagged 50,000 birds the first day

13. More birds came over from a third shipment when the Dennys returned from China in 1884 • These were released on Protection Island, not far from Port Townsend where the first pheasants landed three years earlier • They flourished and had succeeded into crossing into the Strait of Juan de Fuca to colonize Vancouver island • Following their success in the Northwest, Ring-necked Pheasants were introduced across the country, many of which were descendants of the birds that Denny sent to Washington and Oregon • At least 19 states now have sizable pheasant populations

14. Range of the Ring-necked Pheasant

15. A State Symbol • The Ring-necked Pheasant is the state bird of South Dakota • It was introduced there in 1898 for game hunting and its delicious meat • Primarily a Midwestern bird, pheasants are considered a delicacy in many other states

16. A Popular Game Species • Pheasant hunting for sport and consumption were driving factors in their introduction to the United States • Many citizens take part in hunting clubs and organizations that are solely for Ring-necked Pheasants (Pheasants Forever) • Many states like South Dakota have lodges offering pheasant hunting for a fee

17. Pheasants Forever

18. Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever members are a diversified group of hunters, non-hunters, farmers, ranchers, landowners, conservation enthusiasts and wildlife officials. PF and QF are for those who want to make a difference for wildlife by creating habitat, restoring wetlands and protecting prairies. There are more than 650 PF chapters across the U.S. and Canada, accounting for 115,000 current members, and more than 100 QF chapters in the U.S. accounting for 5,000 members. • At the heart of Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever is the unique grassroots system of fundraising and project development that allows members to see the direct result of their contributions. PF and QF empower county chapters with the responsibility to determine how 100% of their locally raised conservation funds will be spent - the only national conservation organization that operates through this truly grassroots structure. As a result, chapter volunteers are able to see the fruits of their efforts locally, while belonging to a larger national organization with a voice on federal and state conservation policy.

19. Habitat Projects - The system of empowering local chapters and volunteers to make the best decisions for wildlife in their local area has resulted in the average annual completion of over 27,200 projects. Since its inception in 1982, Pheasants Forever's wildlife habitat projects have benefited more than 4 million acres across the continent. In that time, PF has participated in nearly 1,000 different land acquisitions totaling well over 100,000 acres. Those land acquisition projects have been completed in conjunction with local, state and federal natural resource agencies, and all of those projects are today open to public hunting. • Habitat Conservation Advocacy - Pheasants Forever and Quail Forever's mission is directly tied to a strong framework of federal conservation programs. Authority for critical conservation programs, such as the Conservation and Wetlands Reserve Program, is granted by the U.S. Congress in the Federal Farm Bill's Conservation Title. In total, federal farm conservation programs allow them to manage nearly 50 million acres for wildlife habitat.