THE JAPANESE PHEASANT. 16^" 



arranged alternately, and in the like manner gradually 

 increase in size ; on the lateral feathers these marks are much 

 smaller, and on the outer ones' are entirely wanting, those 

 feathers being covered with freckles of brown ; orbits crimson 

 red, interspersed with minute tufts of black feathers ; eyes> 

 yellowish hazel ; bill and feet horn .colour. 



"Compared with the female of the common pheasant, the 

 hen of the present bird has all the markings much stronger, 

 and is altogether of a darker colour. She has the whole of 

 the upper surface very dark or blackish brown, each feather 

 broadly edged with buff, passing in some of the feathers to a 

 chesnut hue ; those of the head, and particularly those of the 

 back, with a small oval deep spot of deep glossy green close 

 to the tip ; primaries and secondaries light brown, irregularly 

 barred with buff,- and with baffy shafts; tertiaries dark 

 brown, broadly edged with bufB on their inner webs, and 

 ■ mottled with dull pale chesnut on the outer web, the edge of 

 which is buff ; tail dark brown, mottled with buff, and black 

 on the edges, and crossed by narrow irregular bands of buff, 

 bordered on either side with blotches of dark brown; on 

 the lateral feathers the lighter edges nearly disappear, 

 and the bands assume a more irregular form ; throat buff ; 

 all the remainder of the under surface buff, with a large- 

 irregular arrowhead -shaped mark near the top of each 

 feather ; thigh similar, but with the dark mark nearly 

 obsolete.'^ 



The habits of the Japanese pheasant in its native country 

 were first described by Mr. Heine, the naturalist attached to 

 the American expedition to Japan, and the following obser^ 

 vations by him were published in Commodore Perry's " Japan 

 Expedition " : — " After the treaty of Yokohama had been 

 concluded the United States squadron proceeded to Simoda. 

 A friendly intercourse with the natives was established, and 

 I constantly availed myself of Commodore Perry's kind 

 permission to make additions to our collections in natural 

 history. One morning, at dawn of day, I shouldered my gun 



