THE RING-NECKED PHEASANT. 



No. 192. 



RING-NECKED PHEASANT. 



Introduced. Phasianus torquatus Gmel. 



Synonyms. — Mongolian Pheasant; Chinese Pheasant. 



Description. — Adult male: Sides of head largely bare, with livid skin; top 

 of head light greenish ; short plumicorns dark green ; throat and neck all around 

 black, with rich metallic reflections ; a white cervical collar nearly meeting in front; 

 tore neck and breast, well down, shining coppery red with golden and purplish 

 reflections ; sides rich fulvous with black spots ; belly mostly blackish ; above with 

 indescribable intricacy of marking, — black, white, copper, fulvous, pale blue, virid- 

 ian green, glaucous green, etc., etc., | we are not morally responsible for the color- 

 ing of this marvellous exotic); tail much lengthened, mostly greenish fulvous, 

 edged with heliotrope-purple and cross-banded with black. Adult female: Much 

 plainer, mostly brownish and without white collar ; the upper parts more or less 

 spotted and mottled with dusky ; the under parts nearly plain buffy brown ; the 

 tail-feathers barred for their entire length, dusky and whitish on a mottled brown- 

 ish ground. Adult male length 30.00 or more (762.), of which more than 16.00 

 is tail (406.4). 



Recognition Marks. — Size of domestic fowl. Long tail and white collar 

 distinctive. 



Nest, on the ground of dried leaves, grasses, etc., usually in grass tussock 

 or under bush. Eggs, 8-15, yellowish, or bluish buff. Av. size, 1.61 x 1.31 (40.9 

 x 33-3)- 



General Range. — China. Introduced in various localities of the United 

 States. Well established in Oregon and adjacent states. 



Range in Ohio. — "Successfully introduced into Allen, Ashtabula, Crawford, 

 Erie, Hamilton, Hardin, .Madison, Morgan, Scioto, and Summit Counties and 

 probably others" (Jones). 



THE successful introduction into our state of this splendid game bird 

 really marks a new era in the history of sport, and its advent should be hailed 

 with delight by all true sportsmen. Quick on the wing, prolific, hardy, sapid, 

 this handsome Pheasant is admirably adapted to take the place of those larger 

 native birds, the Wild Turkey, the Prairie Chicken, the Ruffed Grouse, which 

 are no longer available to us. 



The ethics of the situation is perfectly clear. When this country was 

 a howling wilderness it was right and proper that the pioneers should help 

 themselves freely to the abundant game to satisfy their wants and to gratify 

 their desire for sport. That they went too far in some instances is clear to 

 us as it was not to them. It is perhaps inevitable that some of the larger 

 species of birds, unconfined, should have succumbed, as did the deer and the 

 bear among the mammals. The necessary conditions of civilization, apart 

 from the use of gunpowder, were no longer quite tolerable to some of them. 

 Up to a certain point anybody might shoot the Wild Pigeon and the Turkey 

 and welcome. They were bound to go sooner or later. 



