In Scotland and Ireland. 37 



The introduction of the pheasant into the northern 

 districts of Scotland is, however, of comparatively recent 

 date, for in the sixth edition of Mowbray's " Domestic 

 Poultry," 1830, it is stated : "In 1826, a solitary cock 

 pheasant made his appearance as far north as a valley of 

 the Grampians, being the first that had been seen in that 

 northern region " ; and my old friend, Andrew Halliday, told 

 me that he remembered perfectly the introduction of these 

 birds into the coverts near Banff belonging to the Earl of Fife, 

 in which locality Thomas Edwards, the Scottish naturahst, 

 whose hfe has been so graphically written by Mr. Smiles, 

 tells us it now seems to thrive very well, and is a beautiful 

 ornament to parks and woods. 



Messrs. Bucklej^ and Harvie-Brown, in the " Fauna of 

 the Orkney Islands," relate several unsuccessful attempts to 

 introduce pheasants as wild birds into Orkney, which was 

 only to be expected, as there are no trees. 



In Ireland it is also abundant, the common species being, 

 according to Mr. Thompson, the well-known natural historian 

 of the island, frequent in the various wooded parts, at least 

 where it has been protected and preserved. " In the counties 

 of Antrim and Down," remarks this writer, " the ring-necked 

 variety — considered to have originally proceeded from a cross 

 between the common and true ring-necked pheasant (P. 

 torquakis) — is not uncommon." 



On the continent of Europe the pheasant is widely diffused 

 throughout almost all the congenial localities in the south and 

 central portions, where any effort is made in favour of its 

 protection. In Scandinavia its introduction was at first 

 unsuccessful. In 1867 Mr. L. Lloyd, in his " Game Birds in 

 Sweden and Norway," stated that it was not found, although 

 attempts on a large scale had been made to introduce it by the 

 late King Oscar ; but from the severity of the climate, and from 

 the country swarming with vermin and birds of prey of all 

 sorts, the experiment, in Mr. Lloyd's opinion, was not Hkely 

 to be attended with success. Since that date the attempt 



