PHEASANTS IN COVERT AND AVIARY 



"Two males of this species came originally from the 

 mountains of Cochin China, and were presented by the King 

 of Ava to Sir Archibald Campbell, who gave them to the 

 Countess Amherst. Her Ladyship retained them in her 

 possession about two years, and ultimately succeeded in 

 bringing them to England alive, but they only survived the 

 voyage a few weeks. 



" The general character of this bird and the arrangement 

 of its plumage are similar to those of the Golden Pheasant. 

 When Lady Amherst brought home the two specimens from 

 which Mr Leadbeater's characters were taken, nothing certain 

 was known of their history, of the locality where they came 

 from, or of the country of which they were natives, and the 

 time that has elapsed has not enabled us to acquire this very 

 desirable information. It is now, however, believed that the 

 bird is an inhabitant of the Chinese province of Yunnan, and 

 the adjoining regions of Thibet. It is seen how Lady 

 Amherst became possessed of her two specimens. One which 

 was presented to Mr Leadbeater by Lady Amherst passed 

 into the possession of the late Earl of Derby, and now forms 

 part of the vast collection bequeathed by his Lordship to the 

 town of Liverpool. 



" Mr B. H. Hodgson, formerly a British resident ifi Nepaul, 

 who was well known for his devotion to natural history, 

 obtained two specimens, which had been brought into 

 Napaulese territory from some distant country. They are 

 now in the British Museum, and two more have, I believe, 

 been sent to Paris. The six specimens enumerated, all of 

 which are males, are probably all that have yet been collected. 

 It would be my great pleasure to see a female of this fine 

 bird, and every ornithologist would be truly grateful by the 

 arrival of any information respecting the part of the Celestial 

 Empire in which it dwells, and as to its habits. The bird 



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