THE JAPAN PHEASANT. 



RIGIXALLY the Pheasant 

 was an inhabitant of Asia 

 Minor but has been by de- 

 grees introduced into many 

 countries, where its beauty 

 of form, plumage, and the delicacy of 

 its flesh made it a welcome visitor. 

 The Japan Pheasant is a very beauti- 

 ful species, about which little is 

 known in its wild state, but in cap- 

 tivity it is pugnacious. It requires 

 much shelter and plenty of food, and 

 the breed is to some degree artificially 

 kept up by the hatching of eggs un- 

 der domestic hens and feeding them 

 in the coop like ordinary chickens, 

 until they are old and strong enough 

 to get their own living. 



The food of this bird is extremely 

 varied. When young it is gener- 

 erally fed on ants' eggs, maggots, 

 grits, and similar food, but when it is 

 full grown it is possessed of an accom- 

 modating appetite and will eat many 

 kinds of seeds, roots, and leaves. It 

 will also eat beans, peas, acorns, ber- 

 ries, and has even been known to eat 

 the i\y leaf, as well as the berry. 



This Pheasant loves the ground, 

 runs with great speed, and always pre- 

 fers to trust to its legs rather than to its 

 wings. It is crafty, and when alarmed 

 it slips quickly out of sight behind a 

 bush or through a hedge, and then 

 runs away with astonishing rapidity, 

 always remaining under cover until it 

 reaches some spot where it deems it- 

 self safe. The male is not domestic, 

 passing an independent life during 

 a part of the year and associating 

 with others of its own sex during the 

 rest of the season. 



The nest is very rude, being merely 

 a heap of leaves and grass on the 

 ground, with a very slight depression. 

 The eggs are numerous, about eleven 

 or twelve, and olive brown in color. In 

 total length, though they vary consid- 

 erably, the full grown male is about 

 three feet. The female is smaller in 

 size than her mate, and her length 

 a foot less. 



The Japan Pheasant is not a partic- 

 ularly interesting bird aside from his 

 beauty, which is indeed brilliant, there 

 being few of the species more attractive. 



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