280 
PHEASANTS 
Pheasants. Family Phasianid^: 
The true Pheasants, numbering about one hundred species, are 
found from the eastern borders of the Mediterranean through central 
and southern Asia to the Malayan Region. 
The Ring-neck and English Ring-neck have been introduced and 
become naturalized in various parts of the United States. 
Phasianus colcMcus (. Linn .). English Pheasant. Ad. <f. — Head 
and neck green; no white neck-ring; rump rich bronzy red; breast bronze- 
red; the ends of the feathers with broad greenish black bands; flanks reddish 
brown tipped with blue-black. Ad. $ . — Above mixed, black brownish, and 
rusty; below brownish yellow; breast and sides with rusty and black. 
The English Pheasant has been so hybridized with the Ring-necked 
Pheasant that it is now rare to find pure-blooded birds. Consequently 
either name is often equally applicable to these aviary-raised, artificially 
bred birds. 
Nest, on the ground beneath cover. Eggs, 12-20, unmarked olive-buff, 
1*75 x 1*35. Date, Gardiner’s Is., L. I., May. 
The so-called English Pheasant is a native of Asia Minor whence 
it was introduced into Europe by the Greeks, and, it is believed, by the 
Romans into England. The English stock remained pure until about 
the end of the eighteenth century when it was crossed with the Chinese 
Ring-necked Pheasant ( Phasianus torquatus). The progeny proved 
fertile and continued hybridization, in which the Japanese Pheasant 
(Phasianus versicolor) has also been used, has left but few pure-blooded 
birds of the true colchicus type in England. The Pheasant introduced 
into this country from England is of the P. colchicus X P. torquatus strain, 
in which the white neck ring is always more or less developed. It has 
been released and become locally established in Massachusetts, Ohio, 
Indiana, Illinois, New Jersey, Vermont, Pennsylvania, and Kansas. 
(See Oldys, Pheasant Raising in the United States, Farmers’ Bull. 
No. 390, U. S. Dept, of Agric., 1910, 40.) 
Phasianus torquatus (Gmel.). Ring-necked Pheasant. Ad. — 
Head and neck green with strong purplish reflections; a more or less com- 
plete white neck-ring; rump gray or yellowish gray; breast bronze-red, the 
feathers very narrowly margined with purple-black; the end of the feathers 
notched and with a narrow purple black wedge; flanks buffy, tipped with 
blue-black. Ad. 9 . — Resembles adult female of P. colchicus. 
This species has been successfully introduced in Oregon, Washing- 
ton, and British Columbia; and limited numbers have been released 
in the Eastern United States, where, however, its hybrid with P. 
colchicus has been more frequently used for stocking purposes (see 
Oldys, as above). 
The Gray or Hungarian Partridge ( Perdix perdix ) of Europe has 
been brought to this country in large numbers during recent years for 
stocking purposes, nearly 50,000 having been imported between July 
1, 1900, and December 31, 1909. Thus far it does not appear to have 
become naturalized (See Oldys, Yearbook of Dept, of Agric. 1909, pp. 
249-258). 
