246 cassf.ll's book of birds. 



is )-eUow, the beak horn-grey, the foot lead-grey. The hen is copper-red, marked with black, each 

 feather edged with grey of various shades ; those on the thighs are striped pale red and black ; the 

 quills are greyish brown, lightly bordered ; the tail-feathers reddish, streaked with black and marked 

 with deep brown ; the throat and centre of the belly are light, and the lower belly dark grey. 



This Pheasant, with which we became first acquainted through Dr. Siebold and Temminck, 

 received its name from the latter, in honour of Professor Soemmerring, a distinguished naturalist. 



Since the year i860 the living bird has been brought to Europe, and those in the Zoological 

 Gardens, London, produced a brood in June, 1865. 



" The female," says Mr. Bartlett, " laid about ten eggs, but only three or four birds were hatched, 



and these died. The Phasianus Socmmerringii at the Antwerp Gardens also bred, but we are unable 



to say if the young arrived at maturity. In both places the males exhibited a strong inclination 



to destroy the females, and we come to the conclusion that the species is ill-adapted to breed 



in captivity." 



REEVES' PHEASANT. 



Reeves' Pheasant [Phasianus Rea'esii, or P. veneratus) represents a group, called by Wagler 

 Syrmaticus, remarkable for their great length of tail and unusually variegated plumage. In this 

 species the top of the head, ear-tufts, and a broad line around the throat are pure white ; the sides 

 of the head and a wide band across the breast are black, the feathers on the mantle, rump, and upper 

 breast are golden yellow, edged with black ; those pf the lower breast and side whitish grey, decorated 

 with a slender heart-shaped line, broadly edged with brownish red, and those of the belly brownish 

 black. The feathers qf the upper -vying-cqvers are blackish brown, bordered with two lighter shades 

 of brown ; the quills are striped golden yellow and brownish black ; and the tail-feathers silver-grey, 

 dotted with red spots, surrounded by a black line, and broadly bordered with golden yellow. The eye 

 is reddish, the beak and foot greyish yellow. This species resembles the Silyer Pheasant in its general 

 size, but has a streaming tail about six feet in length. 



Considerable confusion respecting the nomenclature of this remarkable bird has been occasioned 

 by the late M. Temminck having, in his " Histoire Naturelle Generale des Pigeons et des Gallinace's," 

 assigned its two lengthened tail-feathers to the old Phasianus superbus of Linnseus, an error which he 

 subsequently corrected, when describing and figuring this bird in his " Planches Colorees " as 

 P. veneratiis. M. Temminck's error was adopted by Dr. Latharn ; and l^ence, while the description of 

 the Barred-tail Pheasant, in his " General History of Birds" (Vol. VIIL, p. 190), has reference to the old 

 P. supe?-bus, some of his remarks apply to the present species. It is probable that the bird did not 

 escape the notice of the celebrated Marco Polo, since he states " there be plenty of Feysants and very 

 great, for i of them is as big as 2 of ours, with Tayles of eygth, nine, and ten spannes long, from the 

 kingdom of Erguyl or Arguill, the western side of Tartary ;" but we question if he ever saw more than 

 the central tail-feathers, which, being held in great estimation, were considered to be suitable presents 

 to foreigners, and hence these feathers found their way to Europe many years before the entire bird. 

 Through Mr. Reeves, after whom this species was named by Dr. Gray, we obtained the sight of the 

 skin of a male, and afterwards some parts of a female. He also brought a female in 1838, and both 

 were living in the Zoological Gardens at the same time, but did not breed. Another, brought from 

 China in 1862, lived at Mr. Kelk's seat, near Edgware, among other Pheasants, at perfect liberty and 

 in excellent health, for two years. Since the Chinese War, living examples have successfully bred in 

 more than one menagerie, both in England and on the Continent. 



" The successful introduction of the living birds now in this country," says Mr. Tegetmeier, in the 

 Field for June 7, 1867, "is owing to the combined efforts of Mr. John J. Stone, and Mr. Walter 

 Medhurst, H.M. Consul at Hankow." 



