THE GOLDEN PHEASANT. 



No amount of artificial colouring 

 could give the full effect of the gorgeous 

 and ever-changing beauty which adorns 

 the plumage of this magnificent bird : 

 while the simple black and white of an en- 

 graving gives but a very faint notion of its 

 real magnificence. The absence of colours 

 must therefore be faintly supplied with a 

 brief description in words. 



The head is white, except a patch of 

 light scarlet naked skin around the eyes, 

 edged by a band of black which runs 

 over the forehead, under the chin, and is 

 rather broader over the ear-coverts. The 

 neck is also broadly collared with white. 

 The back of the neck, and the back 

 itself are covered with shining scale-like 

 feathers, each being a light golden yellow 

 and edged at the extremity by a band oi 

 deep velvety black, thus producing an 

 extremely rich appearance. The feathers 

 of the breast and abdomen are snowy 

 white, banded and tipped with the same 

 velvety black as those of the upper parts 

 with the exception of the middle of the 

 breast and abdomen, which are deep 

 black, and the under tail-coverts, which 

 are also black covered with golden yellow 

 spots. The two central feathers of the 

 tail are delicate grey, covered with nu- 

 merous transverse and rather curved 

 bands of rich dark brown, edged with a 

 lighter tint of the same colour. In one 

 of these feathers only four feet in length, 

 ;k counted forty-seven bands. 

 " feathers of the tail are 

 profusely barred with 

 issing into chestnut at 

 r can be folded over 

 Appear very narrow. 



nrds are shown in 

 e 612, one glowing 

 .11 radiance of gold 

 . other shining like 

 /ft silvery lustre, not 

 so spie.n- . 3n more pleasing. 



The GOLI/L^... PHEASANT is a native 

 of China, where it is a great favourite, 

 not only for its splendid plumage and 

 elegant form, but for the excellence of 

 its flesh, which is said to surpass in de- 

 licacy even that of the common Pheasant. 

 For the purposes of the table, how- 

 ever, it is hardly likely to come into 

 general use, as there are great difficulties 

 in the way of breeding it in sufficient 



R R 2 



REEVES' PHEASANT. Phasitimis Recvesii. 



