Ringneck Pheasant Information

Also known as the Chinese pheasant in the United States, the Ringneck pheasant is a bird that comes from the pheasant family named Phasianidae of the order Galliformes. These birds are native to the continent of Asia but they have been introduced in other regions as a game bird. As a matter of fact, this bird is one of the most popular game birds in the areas where it was introduced.

As far as their description is concerned, the Ringneck pheasant comes in many color variations from white to black. The color variations is wide due to captive breeding & hybridization between the bird's subspecies and with the Green pheasant, strongly reinforced by systematically releases to the wild.

The length of an adult Ringneck pheasant male (also known as a cock) is between 76 and 89 cm with a long brown streaked black tail that measures up to 50cm.

The Ringneck's body plumage is barred bright gold and brown plumage with purple, white and green markings. Some of these birds have a white ring around their neck and have a bottle green head with a small-sized crest and unique red wattles.

The female Ringneck pheasant (hen) has a rather dull mottled brown plumage all over the body and measures between 53 and 63 cm long; the tail is approximately 20 cm in length. The Ringneck pheasant can be found across the entire globe thanks to the fact that they can breed in captivity and can adapt to any given environment. This bird was brought in Great Britain by the Romans and Normans but became extinct in the beginning of the 17th century. Later on, it was introduced again and rediscovered as a game bird in the 1830s and since that period it was reared extensively by gamekeepers. Approximately 30 million Ringneck Pheasants are released each year for hunting purposes and there is no risk of extinction nowadays.

In 1857 these birds were introduced in North America and have become very well established in the Midwest areas as well as the Plains states, Mexico and Canada. These birds were also introduced in Tasmania, New Zealand, some areas of north-west Europe and Chile. There were other attempts to introduce them in other regions but the success was insignificant.

Ringneck pheasants can be found in farmlands, woodlands, wetlands and scrubs. The Ringneck's natural habitat is grassland near water along with scattered trees. Regarding their behavior, these birds are gregarious and when outside the breeding season they form loose flocks. They are known to be very timid, but when hunted will do everything in their power to run to a safe spot. Although these birds can fly for short distances they prefer running; if they sense danger they start flying at respectable speeds of up to 60 miles per hour.

Regarding their diet, these birds eat a wide variety of vegetable and animal foods, some examples would be: fruits, seeds, leaves as well as lizards, snakes and from time to time, birds. As far as the breeding aspect is concerned, they nest on the ground, producing a clutch of 10 eggs (give or take 1-2) over a period of 2-3 weeks in April-June. The incubation lasts around 23 to 26 days. The chicks stay in the near vicinity of the hen for a few weeks; they develop very fast and by the time they are 15 weeks old they look like adults.

Ringneck Pheasant Videos

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