92 BIRDS 



burlap tents erected wherever convenient. The water must 

 be fresh and always in the shade. This point is of great 

 importance, and to its neglect may be traced many of the 

 troubles of pheasant breeders. Many English game-keepers 

 give their chicks no water at all, from their belief that its use 

 would be fatal. This doubtful practice probably originated 

 from unhappy experiences with sun-heated water, and is 

 evidence of the necessity for avoiding such a condition. In 

 any case, the water should be changed at frequent intervals, 

 and if it is not certain that the receptacle will remain shaded, 

 it is safer to remove it after the chicks have drunk. 



The Species of Pheasants 



The pheasant family (Phasianid^) is a very large one, 

 including the Old World quail and partridges, the pheasants 

 proper, the peafowl and the jungle fowl, from which our 

 domestic birds are derived. Although the distinction is 

 purely arbitrary, only those birds which are commonly 

 known as pheasants will be treated here. 



About ninety species of pheasants have been described, 

 some thirty of which are more or less common in captivity ; 

 most of these are generally to be seen in the New York 

 Zoological Park. Many are to be obtained at comparatively 

 .low prices, ranging from six dollars per pair for the Eng- 

 lish Ring-neck to fifty dollars each for the Impeyan. 



The best birds for the novice are those of the Ring-neck 

 group (Phasianiis) , which includes about twenty forms. 

 Most common of all pheasants in captivity is the English 

 Ring-neck, the bird which has been used so extensively in 

 game propagation work in the eastern United States. These 

 pheasants are hybrids between the so-called English or 

 Black-necked Pheasant (P. colchicus), which was 

 brought from Asia Minor at a very early date and preserved 



