THE PHEASANT FAMILY 17 



district of Colchis, through which the 

 Phasis flows into the Black Sea. 



The common pheasant remained in 

 undisturbed possession of our woods and 

 heaths until the end of the eighteenth 

 century, when the ring-necked pheasant 

 {torquatus) was introduced from Southern 

 China. 



Writing in 1795, Bewick notes that he 

 has seen the newcomer in the neighbour- 

 hood of Alnwick, where they had been 

 turned down by the Duke of Northumber- 

 land, adding that "it is much to be 

 regretted that this beautiful breed is 

 likely soon to be destroyed by those who 

 pursue every species of game with an 

 avaricious and indiscriminating rapacity." 

 His prediction was strangely falsified ; 

 the Chinese bird proved more than cap- 

 able of holding his own, increasing and 

 spreading throughout the country during 

 the last century, mingling freely with the 

 older black -neck stock, and eventually 

 becoming the predominant partner in the 

 resulting cross, by which our woods 



