The COMMON PHEASANT (_Phasianus Colchicus_) is so variegated as to render
an accurate description of its plumage extremely difficult. The head,
as well as part of the neck, is green, with a resplendent blue gloss;
the lower part of the neck, breast, belly, and sides are reddish brown,
glistening with purple, each feather on these parts being edged with
glossy black. The feathers on the mantle have white crescent-shaped spots
below the border. The flowing, ragged feathers on the rump are dark
copper-red, shaded with purple; the quills striped brown and reddish
yellow; and the tail-feathers olive-grey, striped with black, and bordered
with reddish brown. The eye is reddish yellow, the bare regions round the
eye red, the beak light brownish yellow, and the foot reddish grey or
lead-colour. This species is from thirty to thirty-two inches long, and
from twenty-nine to thirty-one broad; the wing measures nine inches and
a half, and the tail sixteen inches. The female is of inferior size, and
has the entire plumage of a brownish grey tint, spotted and striped with
black and deep reddish brown; the feathers on her back are darker than the
rest of the body. The _Banded_ and _Isabel Pheasants_ closely resemble the
above bird in their general appearance: but the first is distinguishable
therefrom by a narrow white band on the throat, the deeper shade of its
colouring, and the comparative paleness of its black markings; whilst the
_Isabel Pheasant_ is principally of a light yellowish grey, each feather
edged with a deeper shade, the belly, on the contrary, is very dark,
sometimes quite black. The females of both these last-mentioned varieties
are similar to their mates in the principal hues of their plumage.
The Common Pheasant, which is now naturalised all over the European
continent, was originally introduced from Colchis, and derived its name
from the river Phasis, in the neighbourhood of which it was especially
abundant. In its native country, now called Mingrelia, it is still to
be found wild, and of unequalled beauty. This bird, which is spread
extensively over England, as far north as Northumberland, prefers woods,
especially those of oak or beech, and such as have a growth of long
grass and brambles, also damp ground where osiers and reeds abound, and
hedgerows, but always lives in the vicinity of wood and water. During the
day these Pheasants remain on the ground, moving quietly from bush to
bush, as they go in search of food at dawn and sunset. In their progress
to their feeding-place they always run, and on this account are very
easily taken by wire snares set in the narrow paths that they make in the
long grass which they constantly frequent. Towards evening they go to
roost on low branches, taking their place near the stem or trunk of the
tree. This habit of roosting upon trees is very fatal to their safety,
since, being objects of considerable size, readily distinguishable by
their long tails, and not easily frightened from the perch, they offer a
sure mark during moonlight nights to the poacher's gun. The roosting-place
of the male is very easily discovered, for he invariably chuckles when
he first "trees," or goes to perch; and the female usually chirps on the
same occasion. During summer and the period of moulting the Pheasant
rarely perches, but retires for the night to the longest grass or other
thick cover, and does not begin to "mount" again until towards the end
of September or the beginning of October, having at that time renewed
its plumage. Where Pheasants are numerous, the males are generally found
associated during the winter separate from the females; and it is not
until the end of March that they allow the approach of the latter without
signs of displeasure, or at least indifference. At the above-mentioned
time, however, the male bird assumes an altered appearance; the scarlet
on his cheeks and around his eyes acquires additional depth of colour,
and he walks with a more measured step, with his wing let down, and his
tail carried in a more erect position. Being polygamous, he now takes
possession of a certain "beat," from whence he drives every male intruder,
and commences his crowing, which is accompanied by a peculiar clapping of
his wings as a note of invitation to the other sex, as well as of defiance
to his own. The female makes a very inartificial nest upon the ground, in
long grass or thick underwood, and not unfrequently in fields of clover;
she lays from ten to fourteen eggs, of a clear yellowish grey-green
colour. The young are hatched during the months of June and July, and
continue with the hen until they begin to moult and assume the adult
plumage; after this period the young males are only to be distinguished
from the older birds by the comparative bluntness and shortness of the
tarsal spur. Usually when alarmed the Pheasant escapes by running rapidly,
and seldom uses its wings, except in cases of very pressing danger.
"An old cock Pheasant," says Mr. Yarrell, "immediately on hearing a dog
give tongue in a wood where he is, will foot away to the farthest corner,
particularly if the wood be open at bottom, and from thence run one dry
ditch or hedgerow after another for half a mile to the next covert; but a
hen Pheasant seems to trust to her brown colour to escape detection, and,
squatting in any bit of long grass that is near her, often surprises and
startles the young shooter not a little by bouncing up with a rattling
noise close at his feet. The poor frightened bird is frequently indebted
to the sensation thus created for a clear escape. The brown earth-like
colour of the plumage of the females of several species of Pheasants seems
to be an admirable provision, not only for their individual safety, but
for the preservation of the whole race."
In a wild state, the Pheasant feeds on grain, seeds, green leaves, and
insects; also on some kinds of bulbs and berries.