Traditionally, the Common Pheasant has been grouped into a Western, red-rumped, subspecies group, and an Eastern, grey-rumped subspecies group. the Western group of subspecies of the Common Pheasant is phylogenetically well distinguished from all pheasants in the Eastern group, constituting a
clade. Within the grey-rumped Eastern group, the elegans-group (consisting of
P. c. elegans and
P. c. rothschildi) is basal to all other subspecies within this group. Recent phylogenetic studies point to the possibility that the Elegans-group may in fact be basal to all other subspecies groups of Common Pheasant, and in NE
Greece (
Nestos delta). Additional, now extinct, populations existed in Bulgaria, Greece, and in the border area between Albania and Montenegro. Whether these populations were introduced in ancient time by humans, Characteristic for this group, the upper wing coverts are
buff to rufous brown (in
P. c. persicus greyish white or buffy white), with sparse shiny copper-red streaks. The rump and upper tail-coverts are
rusty to
chestnut with a metallic sheen. The nape and foreback are golden-rufous with black feather edges; the sides of the body are golden-red with glossy black feather tips. The shoulder parts are variegated, showing a pattern of creamy ochre and black contrasting with the rufous or copper-red feather edges. The crop and breast are shiny copper-red (or golden-orange in
P. c. persicus) with velvety-black terminal feather edges of varying widths. The belly is a matte copper-red or dark brown with a reddish tint. The tail feathers are brownish-olive with copper-red edges and dark, sparse, narrow transverse stripes.
Type locality: Rion/Phasis region (Eastern Caucasus). •
Phasianus colchicus Linnaeus, 1758 — protonym •
Phasianus lorenzi Buturlin, 1904 — junior synonym •
Phasianus colchicus europaeus Hachisuka, 1937 — junior synonym
Local names: კოლხური ხოხობი (Georgian: Colchian Pheasant), Cənubi Qafqaz qırqovulu (Azerbaijani: South Caucasian Pheasant), Անդրկովկասյան փասիան (Armenian: Transcaucasian Pheasant), قرقاول ارسبارانی (Persian: Arasbarani Pheasant), Kafkas sülünü (Turkish: Caucasian Pheasant), Κολχικος Φασιανος (Greek: Colchian Pheasant), Колхидски фазан (Bulgarian: Colchian Pheasant), Закавказский фазан (Russian: Transcaucasian Pheasant)
Description: Presently only relict populations remain, and the survival of the nominate subspecies is highly endangered by the introduction of hunting pheasants which genetically eradicate the native form. In the
western part of its range, which extends from Greece to the
Colchis lowland, it presently survives in a small area in the
Lake Paliastomi basin and in the
Rioni river basin. In the Chorokh valley in southern Georgia/extreme northeastern Turkey, and in the
Kodori River valley in Abkhazia it is now extinct. In Turkey, relatively pure populations exist at the Black Sea coast in the region
Sinop-
Samsun-
Ünye and near
Trabzon. In the
Marmara region in Turkey, in northeastern Greece (Macedonia and Thrace), formerly pure populations are now wiped out by hybridisation due to introductions from farms and for hunting purposes. E.g., in Bulgaria,
P. c. torquatus was introduced in 1895, and
P. c. mongolicus on a large scale in the years 1962–1989, leading to genetic extinction of the nominate form around 1990. In Armenia it is genetically swamped by hunting pheasants almost everywhere; small numbers only survive in the southern valley of the Araks river at the border to Iran (around
Shvanidzor), and near the border with Azerbaijan (
Kapan,
Yeghvardi,
Nerkin Hand). Historically, in the Araks valley
P. c. colchicus never ascended much further then
Ordubad (in
Nakhichevan). It occurred only in the southern (and possibly extreme northeastern) parts of Armenia, especially near the border regions with Iran and Azerbaijan. In
Nagorno-Karabakh, it ascended along the
Tartar river valley up to 1500 m altitude, to about the village of
Hasanriz. In Azerbaijan this subspecies is now extinct in the
Kura-Araz plain, in the
Lankaran plain (including the Gizil Agaj Reserve), in the
Samur-Shabran plain, and in the Nakhichivan-Arazboyu plain; small numbers survive in some nature reserves in the foothill regions of the Greater and Lesser Caucasus, like
Gusar,
Sheki, and
Uludüz. Populations in the coastal lowlands of northeastern Azerbaijan (
Quba-Khachmaz) are of unclear subspecific status (
P. c. septentrionalis vs.
P. c. colchicus).
Type locality: North side of the Caucasus. •
Phasianus septentrionalis — protonym
Local names: Şimali Qafqaz qırqovulu (Azerbaijani: North Caucasian Pheasant), Северокавказский фазан (Russian: North Caucasian Pheasant)
Description: In the second half of the 19th and in the first half of the 20th century, the pheasant's range in southern Russia was sharply reduced due to overhunting. Formerly it also was present up to the mouth of Kuban river, but by the early 20th century it was exterminated everywhere along the Black Sea coast. Various hybrid forms ("hunting pheasants") were released in hunting grounds in the Rostov and Volgograd regions as well as in Kabardino-Balkaria, leading to their partial assimilation by the North Caucasian subspecies and contamination of its genotype; hunting pheasants entered the Rostov Region also from the Luhansk region along the
Northern Donets valley. Possible pure populations may survive in the central part of the Volga Delta, and in the lower Terek valley, where likely no release of hunting pheasants occurred, and in the lower reaches of the Samur River. The wild population is highly endangered by introduced hunting pheasants, which threaten to genetically eradicate the native form. The native
P. c. septentrionalis is currently listed in the Red Book of the Republic of Ingushetia, in the Red Book of the Chechen Republic, in the Red Book of the Karachay-Cherkess Republic, and in the Red Book of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic.
Habitat: Mosaic floodplain landscapes, rivers banks and islands, in dense thickets of willow,
sea-buckthorn and oleaster, along floodplain groves, in
blackthorn, reed beds, and along edges of forests. In the floodplain forests of the Terek River, grey alder (
Alnus incana), white poplar (
Populus alba), and oak (
Quercus robur) are accompanied by an undergrowth of hazel (
Corylus avellana), warty spindle tree (
Euonymus verrucosus), black elder (
Sambucus nigra), blackthorn (
Prunus spinosa), and sea-buckthorn (
Hippophae rhamnoides), and in the lower layer with reed (
Phragmites australis), blackberry (
Rubus caesius), reed grass (
Calamagrostis arundinacea), fern (
Matteuccia struthiopteris) and butterbur (
Petasites albus); numerous islands and springs in these areas are the main habitate.
Type locality: Lenkoran (today Azerbaijan, formerly in the
Talysh Khanate). •
Phasianus persicus talischensis — protonym
Local names: Talış qırqovulu (Azerbaijani: Talysh Pheasant), قرقاول تالشی (Persian: Talysh Pheasant), قرقاول گیلان (Persian: Gilan Pheasant), Талышский фазан (Russian: Talysh Pheasant)
Description: spring counts gave 105 individuals in 1982, 25-31 individuals in 1993–1995, and 5-7 individuals in 2003–2005; in 2023 the population was estimated to amount to not more than 50 pairs. In Iran, it is still present in the
Talesh forests up to
Saravan and
Deylaman and in tea gardens and low plains such as the Jokundan wetland (near
Saragah), the edges of the
Anzali lagoon, Buchag (Bojaq)
Kiashahr National Park,
Astara Protected Region and in Nahalestan.
Habitat: Lowland forest (mainly small woodlands and marshy forest), dense reed thickets, and blackberry thickets; it is absent in oak-hornbeam forests and foothills forests.
1.1.4. Phasianus colchicus persicus (Persian black-necked pheasant) Authority and original description: Severtsov, N.A. 1875.
Type locality: South shore of the Caspian Sea. •
Phasianus persicus Severtsov, NA 1875 — protonym
Local names: قرقاول ایرانی (Persian: Persian Pheasant), قرقاول هیرکانی (Persian: Hyrcanian Pheasant), قرقاول خزری (Persian: Caspian Pheasant), قرقاول مازندرانی (Persian: Mazandaran Pheasant), قرقاولهای گلستان (Persian: Golestan Pheasant), Pars sülgüni (Turkmen: Persian Pheasant), Персидский фазан (Russian: Persian Pheasant)
Description: The abdomen is similar as in
P. c. talischensis, bordered in front with purplish-red. Like
P. c. talischensis,
P. c. persicus differs from
P. c. septentrionalis and
P. c. colchicus in having the upper tail-coverts with a very uniform purple coloration without greenish reflections. A metallic green gloss on the tail is almost absent. The females are as in
P. c. talischensis.
Measurements: Male wing length (number, range, average): Hartert, Delacour: To the east it does not extend beyond the watershed between the valleys of the Atrek and the
Heri-rud. In the west it reaches the distribution range of
P. c. talischensis between
Ramsar and
Chalus. Until about 1920 it also populated the
Ashgabat and
Gökdepe region in Turkmenistan, where it was exterminated by hunting. Radde and Walter reported that in the widespread gardens of
Quchan common pheasants were present in 1886, however it was unclear if they belonged to
P. c. persicus or to
P. c. principalis. Their geographic ranges form a "cross" pattern with
P. c. zarudnyi at its center. The
females of this group are lighter than the Caucasian females. The upperparts are sandy-gray with a slight reddish sheen and dark, elongated spots. The underparts are pale ochre without a streaky pattern, with sparse small spots on the crop and sides.
Type locality: Bala Murghab, Afghanistan. By 1959, this subspecies was likely extinct in Afghanistan due to overhunting and habitat destruction.
Habitat: Grassy, shrub-covered areas among reeds and not far from grain fields; river valleys densely overgrown with forest and
tamarisk and adjacent plains covered with bushes and
camel thorn. A plain bird. At the foothills of the Kopet Dagh range mostly amongst
Tamarix ramosissima,
T. chinensis and
Populus euphratica forests. In the Hari Rud valley it used to occur in reed swamps along water courses where
Tamarix prevails, and where there are
Populus groves and some apricot orchards.
Type locality: Amu Daria from Khiva to Chardjui. Originally, valleys of the central Amu-Darya river on the eastern Turkmenistan–Uzbekistan border, north to
Turtkul (there almost touching the southernmost range of
P. c. chrysomelas), south to
Kerki and
Köýtendag (the eastern point of occurrence of
P. c. bianchii). At present, the northern limit is the
Tuyamuyun reservoir, which forms a natural barrier between
P. c. zarudnyi and
P. c. chrysomelas, and the southern limit is at
Kelif. In Uzbekistan, it is limited to the area of the
Kyzylkum Tugai and Sand Reserve in
Bukhara region on the right bank of the Amu Darya River, the buffer zone of which encompasses the
Darganata tugai forest on the left bank.
Habitat: Type locality: Katla Kurgan, Samarkand (southern Uzbekistan). •
Phasianus zerafschanicus sive
klossowskii Tarnovski, G.V. 1891— protonym •
Phasianus tarnovksii Seebohm, H. 1892 — junior synonym
Local names: Зарафшон қирғовули (Uzbek: Zerafshan Pheasant), Зарафшонӣ тазарв (Tajik: Zerafshan Pheasant), Зеравшанский фазан (Russian: Zerafshan Pheasant)
Description: Habitat: Type locality: Lower Amu Daria, Russian Turkestan (present-day Uzbekistan/Turkmenistan). •
Phasianus chrysomelas Severtsov, 1875 — protonym
Local names: Hywa sülgün (Turkmen: Khiva Pheasant), Хива қирғовули (Uzbek: Khiva Pheasant), Хивинский фазан (Russian: Khiva Pheasant)
Description: Type locality: Upper Amu Darya Valley (southern Uzbekistan). Its historic distribution was along the
Panj river from
Termez to
Chubek, and along its right tributaries (
Surkhandarya) to the north as far as
Denau, from where the distribution area entered the
Hissar Valley, reaching
Dushanbe and
Yangi Bazaar; along the
Kafirnigan north of 38th parallel; along the
Vakhsh to a little north of
Bokhtar, where this river emerges from the mountains; river valleys of lower reaches of
Qizilsu and Yakhsu; down the Amu Darya it did not seem to go beyond
Termez.
Type locality: Yarkand (Xinjiang, western China). •
Phasianus shawii Elliot, 1870 — protonym •
Phasianus insignis Elliot, 1870 — junior synonym •
Phasianus shawi chrysomeloides Lorenz, 1909 — junior synonym
Local names: 雉鸡莎车亚种 (Chinese: Shache subspecies of Common Pheasant)
Description: The flanks are golden-orange with black feather tips. The dark bars on basal half of the middle tail-feathers are usually 3–4 mm wide. The belly is black and golden as in
P. c. crysomelas and
P. c. bianchii.
P. c. shawii is similar to
P. c. bianchii in the upperparts and laterally, with sides that have a golden orange colour even more evident due to the wide black feather tips. It is similar to
P. c. chrysomelas, but the upper back feathers have very narrow black, glossy green, margins and show at tips broad, glossy green, wedge-shaped spots. It differs from
P. c. tarimensis in having whitish wing-coverts, and reddish rump and upper tail-coverts. The female is very pale, the ground colour of the mantle is pale rufous-buff; the general colour of the remainder of the plumage is light buff; it has fewer dark markings than the female of
P. c. bianchii. Genetic studies clearly show that it groups with the
principalis-crysomelas group. In southwest extending to the road leading from Sanju (
Pishan County) to
Kashgar, in the north extending north of the Tarim river to
Qiuci and to the foothills of
Tien Shan in
Wensu County. In the west, entering the valleys at the foothills of
Alay and
Pamir. It intergrades with the sandy-winged
P. c. tarimensis at the Tarim river between the Aksu-Hotan-Tarim junction in the west and
Xayar County. Separated from
P. c. mongolicus by the Tian Shan, and from
P. c. bianchii by the Pamir and Alay.
Habitat: Type locality: Syr Daria River, Turkestan. •
Phasianus mongolicus turcestanicus — protonym •
Phasianus mongolicus triznae Zarudny, N.A. 1909 — junior synonym •
Phasianus mongolicus kvaskovskii Zarudny, N.A. 1909 — junior synonym •
Phasianus mongolicus bergii Zarudny, N.A. 1914 — junior synonym
Local names: Сирдарё қирғовули (Uzbek: Syr Darya Pheasant), Сирдарёӣ тазарв (Tajik: Syr Darya Pheasant), Сырдария қырғауылы (Kazakh: Syr Darya Pheasant), Сырдарья кыргоолу (Kyrgyz: Syr Darya Pheasant), Сыр-Дарьинский фазан (Russian: Syr Darya Pheasant)
Description: The female does not differ from female
P. c. mongolicus.
Measurements: Male wing length (number, range, average): Dementyev: Along valley of river
Syr-Darya, in Kazakhstan, southeast to the westernmost borders of the
Fergana basin (in the valley itself it is almost exterminated); in the eastern mountain slopes of the Ferghana basin (form
"triznae"), where it populates mountain slopes of
Tien Shan to the south of
Terskey-Ala-Tau in Uzbekistan and borders of Kyrgyzstan (Abdusamat nature reserve). In the
Jalalabad region, it is distributed sporadically throughout its entire extend, in particular the southeastern slopes of the
Chatkal Range, in
Arslanbob, and it occurs also in the
Kara Darya basin. It used to occur in the
Osh region, in
Gulcha; birds that used to occur at the upper river
Kyzyl-Su in the
Alai Valley at the lower part of the Iyyrsu River valley (headwater of
Mashat River) in the Mashattau Mountains, and near the Chokpak pass. At the beginning of the 21st century, pheasants spread to the Aksu-Dzhabagly area from both the Talas valley across the Chokpak saddle (
P. c. mongolicus) and from the Arys valley (
P. c. turcestanicus); in the Syr Darya Karatau, birds appeared in 2004 at the
Boralday and Koshkar-ata rivers, in 2005 in the Aulie tract, in 2007 in Karabastau and in 2010 in
Kentau; in Kokbulak it started nesting in 2007; the subspecific identity in this entire area needs clarification.
Type locality: Regions of the Altai. •
Phasianus mongolicus Brandt, 1844 — protonym •
Phasianus brandti Rothschild, 1901 — junior synonym •
Phasianus semitorquatus Severtsov, 1875 — junior synonym
Local names: Жетісу қырғауылы (Kazakh: Semirechye Pheasant), Жети‑Суу кыргоолу (Kyrgyz: Semirechye Pheasant), Семиреченск қирғовули (Uzbek: Semirechye Pheasant), Семиреченский фазан (Russian: Semirechye Pheasant), 雉鸡准葛尔亚种 (Chinese: Junggar subspecies of Common Pheasant)
Description: In the Issyk-Kul Basin, it penetrates into the lower parts of the gorges along the Karakol, Tyup, Dzhergalan, and Jetyoguz rivers, reaching the coniferous forest belt. In the Talas Valley, the pheasant nests everywhere, and is common in the lower reaches of this river. It occurs at the shores of Lake Biylikol, and it recently ascends across the Chokpak saddle to the Aksu-Dzhabagly Nature Reserve, where it comes in contact with
P. c. turcestanicus. It was introduced by humans into the range of
P. c. turcestanicus, in the Chirchik River basin between 1973 and 1976, and in the Kumara Range in 1975; further from the
Kochkor Valley to the
Atbashi and lower
Naryn valleys in the 1880s and 1890s. To the east, it extends to
Alakol and
Zaisan, where it had disappeared and was re-introduced. It populates the river valleys of
Ili (up to Kuldzhi),
Jumgal,
Talkar,
Charyn,
Chilik, Turgen,
Lepsi. To the East in the Tian-Shan, it reaches high altitudes along the valleys of
Tekes and
Kunges, tributaries of the Ili, and thence onward, throughout southern
Dzungaria as far as
Kuldja,
Ürümqi, and
Guchen in the east and
Lake Ebi-Nor in the west. In China, it is distributed along the
Tekes River and Gongnaisi River in northwestern
Xinjiang, east to the central Tian Shan Mountains, and north to the Dzungar Basin. It occurs in the following counties and regions of Xinjiang:
Xinyuan,
Gongliu,
Tekes,
Zhaosu,
Nileke,
Ili River Valley,
Yining,
Huocheng,
Chabuchar,
Bole (Bozhou),
Ebi Lake,
Jinghe, Ganjiahu, Gurtu,
Wusu,
Kuitun,
Shawan,
Shihezi,
Manas,
Changji,
Ürümqi,
Junggar Basin,
Yumin,
Tacheng,
Emin River Basin,
Karamay,
Ailik Lake,
Altai, Dahalasu.
Type locality: From Karashar (today's Yanqi Hui Autonomous County), in the lower valley of the Tarim River, and the valley of the Cherchen Daria, to the shores of Lob-nor. •
Phasianus tarimensis Pleske, 1889 — protonym •
Phasianus tarimensis Przewalski, 1883 - nomen nudum
Local names: 雉鸡塔里木亚种 (Chinese: Tarim subspecies of Common Pheasant)
Description: Type locality: Province of Szechuan (Sichuan), near its southwestern border. The male has head, neck, and breast dark green, crown and nape grey green to bronze green. There are no white eyebrows and no white neckring. Rump and wing patches are lavender as in
P. c. torquatus. The broad feather edges of the front back are strangely pale reddish brown with a yellow-green or golden-red gloss (depending on angle), the tips are deeply and narrowly notched and have no or only narrow black shaft streaks or wedges (this is one of the main characteristics of this subspecies), and only the feathers near the neck also have black side margins. The golden colour of the upper back is replaced by a deep brown on the back and scapulars. The mantle is chestnut, bordered with green on the tip of each feather. The lower back and rump are dark green, broadly edged with grey. The waist is grey with black horizontal spots. The upper tail-coverts are greenish grey, with the outermost one on each side rusty red. The tail is chestnut red, cross-barred black. The lower plumage is glossy dark green or steel-blue. The dark green of the back extends unbroken to the middle of breast and chest (broken by bands of yellow or coppery in
P. c. decollatus and
P. c. strauchi). Thus a broad band of richly glossed dark colour runs right down the under-parts, completely separating the brassy-chestnut of the flanks. The central belly is deep brown.
P. c. elegans differs from
P. c. suehschanensis by being blacker below, with more extensive purple-blue on breast, by lacking the broad black wedges on the upper back, and by having more reddish, less maroon, on the scapulars. It differs from
P. c. vlangalii in having the flanks coppery maroon istead of golden buff, and the mantle and scapulars maroon instead of sandy red. It is distinguished from subspecies of the
torquatus-group by much wider black bars on the basal part of the central tail feathers; the mantle and scapular feathers are darker, the upper feathers of the mantle are more spotted at their tips with dark green, and the lower back and rump feathers have rather wide sub-terminal dark-green bands. The female is similar to that in other Eastern races, but differs from that of
P. c. colchicus in the white throat and foreneck, and in the irregularly black-barred underparts.
Measurements: Male wing length (number, range, average): Vaurie: Western
Sichuan (counties
Emei,
Mabian,
Leshan,
Nanchuan,
Xichang,
Huidong,
Muli,
Kangding,
Batang,
Ebian,
Meigu), Yunnan (
Yongshan,
Ludian,
Qiandian,
Jingdong,
Binchuan,
Lijiang,
Lushui,
Zhongdian,
Deqin,
Tengchong), eastern
Tibet (
Jiali,
Biru, and river valley in Xiaobangda District,
Markam County), and extreme western Guizhou (
Hezhang,
Weining,
Panxian); also northern Myanmar (
Kachin Hills, northern Shan State). Hybrids have been reported in NE Yunnan with
P. c. rothschildi in Yongshan (Huashiban, 滑石板, and Yongan, 永安村) and
Ludian (Dashuijing, 大水井乡) Counties, and with
P. c. decollatus in Yongshan County (Xuebai, 雪柏村, and Malan, 马楠乡);
Habitat: Hillside thickets, slopes and summits covered with tall grass and ferns, and also sparse coniferous forests; preferred elevation in western Sichuan is 1500–3000 m. In Tibet it ascends to 3800 m.
2.1.2. Phasianus colchicus rothschildi (Rothschild's grey-rumped pheasant) Authority and original description: La Touche, J.D.D. 1922.
Type locality: Mountains near Mengtsz, southeastern Yunnan. •
Phasianus colchicus rothschildi — protonym
Local names: 雉鸡滇南亚种 (Chinese: Southern Yunnan subspecies of Common Pheasant), Trĩ đỏ (Vietnamese: Red Pheasant)
Description: The feathers at breast and flanks are pale chestnut, shading into gold on their terminal half; the upper surface of the tail is olive, not deep chestnut red. The breast is glossy dark blue, shot with green. Sometimes the upper breast is green and the lower breast deep ruby. It differs from
P. c. suehschanensis in having only very narrow black shaft wedges on the feathers of the upper back. Hybrids between
P. c. elegans and
P. c. rothschildi are characterized by maroon to brown-maroon on the upper back, and the flanks are golden brown to brown maroon, similar to
P. c. elegans; however, the dark green range of the chest is limited to a smaller area, and the green is limited to the middle part and tinged red, which is similar to
P. c. rothschildi. in Vietnam in northern Tonkin (
Lào Cai,
Yên Bái and
Bắc Kạn), northern
Laos and eastern
Myanmar. Hybrids with
P. c. elegans were observed in
Yongshan County and
Ludian County, and with
P. c. decollatus in
Yiliang County in northeastern Yunnan. Intermediate birds were also observed in
Nanhua County.
Type locality: Zaidam (=Qaidam, north‑central China). •
Phasianus vlangalii Przevalski, 1876 (protonym) •
Phasianus colchicus vlangallii — alternate spelling •
Phasianus colchicus vlangali — invalid spelling variant
Local names: 雉鸡青海亚种 (Chinese: Qinghai subspecies of Common Pheasant)
Description: The soil in southern Qaidam consists of salty loess clay, tousled like a ploughed field, and is along the narrow strips of watercourses overgrown more or less densely with bushes of harmyk (
Nitraria schoberi) and tamarisk (
Tamarix laxa); less common are sugak (
Lycium ruthenicum, less often
Lycium turcomanicum) and dogbane (
Apocynum venetum); in the marshy areas around the springs, reed (
Phragmites australis) swamps are abundant, where during the mating season the pheasants choose the drier parts - islets and spits covered with low reeds or sedge. In addition to several cereals, there are also iris (
Iris ssp.) and peaweed (
Sphaeropysa salsula) common; often also cynomorium (
Cynomorium coccineum). The pheasant frequents the cane-groves and bush-covered localities, and in winter feeds on berries. The altitude of the southern Qaidam plain is 2800–3000 m above sea level.
2.2.2. Phasianus colchicus suehschanensis (Sungpan grey-rumped pheasant) Authority and original description: Bianchi, V.L. 1906.
Type locality: Sungpan, northern Szechuan (Sichuan), China. •
Phasianus süehschanensis Bianchi, 1906 (protonym) •
Phasianus colchicus suechanensis — invalid spelling variant
Local names: 雉鸡四川亚种 (Chinese: Sichuan subspecies of Common Pheasant)
Description: West-central China (upper
Min valley and southern slopes of
Min Shan range, and
Songpan in northwestern Sichuan; in
Dujiangyan,
Pingwu,
Baoxing,
Wenchuan,
Maoxian,
Songpan,
Jiuzhaigou,
Zoigê, and
Hongyuan Counties). In
Ganzi Prefecture, it is found along the valley of the
Dadu River flowing through the counties of
Kangding,
Luding and
Danba. In the South it is occasionally reported in
Zeku (泽库) in southeast Qinghai, in
Jangda (Tibet), and in the northeastern corner of Tibet (these observations are unclear, as they are widely disjunct from the core range of
P. c. suehschanensis, with massive mountain ranges in between). It also is reported from scattered locations in southern Gansu, however one must keep in mind that in the southernmost locations of its range,
P. c. strauchi can occasionally develop a green metallic band which reaches the belly, similar to
P. c. suehschanensis, and misidentifications are possible.
2.2.3. Phasianus colchicus strauchi (Strauch's grey-rumped pheasant) Authority and original description: Przevalski, N.M. 1876.
Type locality: Tetung and Buhuk-gol, Kansu (Gansu, north-central China). •
Phasianus strauchi Przevalski, N.M. 1876 — protonym •
Phasianus holdereri Schalow, H. 1901 — junior synonym •
Phasianus strauchi chonensis Ogilvie-Grant, W.R. 1912 — junior synonym
Local names: 雉鸡甘肃亚种 (Chinese: Gansu subspecies of Common Pheasant)
Description: From South and West towards Northeast, the proportion of individuals with collar and with eyebrows increases. Traces of white collars/white eyebrows were seen in:
Datong river valley (4%/9%),
Lanzhou (5%/-),
Lixian (7%,-),
Minxian (12%,-),
Minqin (
P. c. sohokhotensis, 20%/20%),
Longxi (20%/15%),
Tianshui (22%/22%),
Wushan (23%/9%),
Gangu (25%/15%),
Xiji (33%/33%),
Xi'an (33%,-),
Zhouzhi (40%,-),
Haiyuan (43%/29%),
Longde (43%/43%),
Shangxian (50%,-),
Taibai (71%/14%),
Zhuanglang (87%/50%),
Huayin (100%/67%),
Huating (100%/78%). In the South (
Zoigê,
Gannan,
Longnan, and
Zeku regions), individuals have 50-67% of the chest dark green, with some individuals having the dark green connected to the black abdomen similar to
P. c. sueschanensis (but with the upperparts less deep coloured); the hind-neck and mantle are golden-yellow stained with copper-red, and the lower backs chestnut-purple. In the North (
Tianshui,
Xi'An, and
Liupanshan regions), typically 20-33% of the chest is dark green, and in the Liupanshan region there are occasionally individuals without any dark green on the upper chest; towards the north, the lower back gradually turns pale chestnut, and the hind-neck and mantle are more golden-yellow without copper-red. In the
Minqin area (
P. c. sohokhotensis), the golden color on the upper back is deeper. Whether these clines are an intrinsic part of
P. c. strauchi or reflect intergradation between neighboring subspecies, has not been clarified so far. In
Huayin and in
Chang'an birds with obvious neck rings that were interrupted in front were observed, but with no or vestigial eyebrow patterns, and with copper-red flank feathers; they were assigned to hybrids between
P. c. strauchi and
P. c. torquatus. 7: 212–232; Delacour: 8: 230–257 mm (240.8 mm); Ogilvie-Grant: In the range north to
Dingxi,
Tianshui,
Zhouzhi, and
Xi'an (and possibly further north), and east to
Shangxian, as well as in the Liupanshan mountains north to
Haiyuan County, it intergrades with a subspecies of unclear identity.
P. c. strauchi occurs west of the Guanshan (the branch of Liupanshan in Gansu ).
Type locality: Sohokhoto Oasis, southern Alashan (north-central China), ca. 100 km north of the eastern Nan Shan foothills. •
Phasianus strauchi sohokhotensis Buturlin, 1908 — protonym
Local names: 雉鸡阿拉善亚种 (Chinese: Alashan subspecies of Common Pheasant)
Description: It is very desirable to have more information of pheasants from the range of this subspecies, as not much is known about its individual variability or, indeed, about its distribution range. The female does not differ from that of
P. c. strauchi.
Measurements: Male wing length (number, range, average): Liu:
P. c. sohokhotensis was found around 1900 by Kozlov both on the northwestern and southeastern sides of the oasis. It is likely that the range includes further oasis areas beyond Minqin within the Shiyang River Basin (
Liangzhou,
Yongchang,
Jinchuan, Babusha), but nothing is known currently about this. Possibly this race also enters the
Qilian Shan, where it interacts with
P. c. strauchi, but again, nothing is known about this. The subspecies occurring in the Ningwei Plain Oasis is also entirely unknown, as is the interaction between
P. c. sohokhotensis and
P. c. alaschanicus in the Alxa Left Banner, and their interaction with
P. c. edzinensis of the Heihe River basin.
Habitat: Oasis in desert areas. Altitude 1250 m above sea level. Kozlov found them in January in the evenings perched on the trees growing along the ditches irrigating the fields; during the night the birds flew to the edge of the virgin forest; during the day, resting after feeding, the pheasants were hiding in the bushes that grow sparsely near Chinese graves. On the eastern outskirts of Sokhohoto, there were more pheasants, since state-owned pastures with rich grass, shrub, and woody vegetation were concentrated there.
2.2.5. Phasianus colchicus satscheuensis (Satchu grey-rumped pheasant) Authority and original description: Pleske, T.E. 1892.
Type locality: North of the Nan Shans. •
Phasianus satscheuensis Pleske, 1892 — protonym
Local names: 雉鸡祁连山亚种 (Chinese: Qilian Shan subspecies of Common Pheasant)
Description: Type locality: Lower Edzin-gol, central Gobi. •
Phasianus colchicus edzinensis Sushkin, 1926 — protonym
Local names: 雉鸡弱水亚种 (Chinese: Ruo Shui subspecies of Common Pheasant)
Description: Type locality: Western foothills of the Ala-Shans (=Helan Shan). •
Phasianus alaschanicus Alferaki, SN; Bianchi, VL 1908 — protonym
Local names: 雉鸡贺兰山亚种 (Chinese: Helan Shan subspecies of Common Pheasant)
Description: Also, in the light of the discussion for
P. c. strauchi, the presence of collar and supercilium are not clear-cut subspecific characters, and a larger series of birds needs to be studied. Together with
P. c. sohokhotensis, this is one of the most elusive subspecies.
Measurements: Male wing length (number, range, average): Xing
et al.: 1: 245 mm.
Distribution: Type locality: Eastern China, error, the type probably was brought from Kalgan and probably originated in the mountainous of NW Hebei and N Shanxi. •
Phasianus holdereri kiangsuensis Buturlin, SA 1904 — protonym •
Phasianus schensinensis Buturlin, SA 1905 — junior synonym •
Phasianus gmelini pewzowi Alferaki, SN; Bianchi, VL 1908 — junior synonym
Local names: 雉鸡内蒙亚种 (Chinese: Inner Mongolia subspecies of Common Pheasant)
Description: This subspecies is more richly coloured than
P. c. hagenbecki,
P. c. pallasi and
P. c. karpowi, with a darker crown and usually narrower white collar, the latter very variable, usually continuous, but can be frontally open; the superciliaries are narrow and inconspicuous, often faint. The upper back and flanks vary from golden yellow or golden brown to rich leathery golden orange, the edges to the scapulars darker, deep chestnut rufous with purplish gloss. The black margins at the flanks are even darker than in
P. c. karpowi. The chest is copper-red to brown-red; the anchor shaped black margins at the chest feathers vary from narrow but conspicuous to obsolete. The female of
P. c. kiangsuensis has a greyish brown background colour, heavily marked at the upper parts and on the sides.
Note: It can be quite challenging to differentiate this subspecies from
P. c. karpowi and from
P. c. torquatus, not to mention
P. c. alaschanicus. Furthermore, northern populations of
P. c. strauchi show intergradation with some unidentified subspecies with white eyebrows and collar, and the identity of the populations on the western Ordos plateau and on the Loess plateau east of the Liupan mountains is unclear. The situation is complicated by the facts that
P. c. torquatus seems to have been introduced into the range of
P. c. kiangsuensis, and that
P. c. karpowi seems to have vastly extended its range as a result of human cultivation of formerly arid areas, now co-occurring in a large area with
P. c. kiangsuensis. Which subspecies populate the range between
Baotou and
Bayannur and from there south to
Wuhai and
Yinchuan, and how they interact, remains to be clarified.
Measurements: Male wing length (number, range, average): Liu
et al.: In Shaanxi,
P. c. kiangsuensis was reported in surveys conducted in 1956-1963 from the
Loess Plateau in
Tongchuan,
Huangling,
Luochuan,
Ganquan,
Yan'an,
Nanniwan,
Zichang, and
Suide, as well as from the
Ordos Plateau in
Dingbian and
Yichuan. However, later studies reported "
P. c. torquatus" in Ningxia and in the
Liupanshan foothills. In the
Mu Us desert region of northern Shaanxi,
P. c. kiangsuensis was observed in the eastern parts, in
Shenmu area, whereas "
P. c. torquatus" was reported in the western parts, in
Dingbian area. "
P. c. torquatus" was also reported on the eastern side of the Guanshan Mountains (a southern branch of the Liupanshan Range).
Birds on Longdong Loess Plateau and in the Guangzhong Plain: In a 1984 publication, specimens from the
Qingyang area (
Huachi,
Heshui,
Ningxian) and the
Pingliang area (
Zhuanglang,
Huating) in the Longdong Loess Plateau, including 10 adult males, were described as follows: "Unlike
strauchi, these birds had golden upper backs, dark green lower backs and rumps, and yellowish-brown color of the central rump feathers. The upper breast lacks dark green, appearing pale reddish-copper in hue, similar to the lower breast. Broad anchor-shaped black patches adorn the feather edges. The flank feathers are pale golden-yellow, with large, "m"-shaped black tips. Males all possess a white neck ring, slightly interrupted at the foreneck. They are similar to the East China subspecies [
P. c. torquatus], but are lacking a white supercilium. Unlike
P. c. kiangsuensis, which is distributed in northern Shaanxi, they have an interrupted neck ring and lack a white supercilium.". This contradicts the statement in 1984 with respect to white eyebrow stripes. In another publication in 1992, it was reported that of nine specimens from Huating, all showed a white collar and seven showed a white supercilium, and of eight specimens from Zhuanglang, seven showed a white collar and four a white supercilium. They are possibly involving
P. c. edzinensis and
P. c. alaschanicus. Birds to the south of the Helan Shan (
Zhongwei) are also of an unidentified subspecies (possibly involving
P. c. sohokhotensis or
P. c. alaschanicus). Birds in the Liupanshan mountains in Ningxia (
Longde,
Xiji,
Haiyuan) seem intergrades between
P. c. strauchi and this unidentified subspecies. Furthermore, observations indicate that
P. c. kiangsuensis enters the Ordos Plateau from the East along traffic infrastructure.
Habitat: Type locality: Kobdo Valley, Mongolia. •
Phasianus hagenbecki Rothschild, LW 1901 — protonym
Local names: Зэрлэг гургуул (Mongolian: Wild Pheasant), 雉鸡科布多亚种 (Chinese: Kobdo subspecies of Common Pheasant), Кобдинский фазан (Russian: Kobdo Pheasant)
Description:, via
Ölgii town south to the reed beds of Khar-Us Lake, and further south to the birch groves of the Zereg depression (
Zereg sum); it also included the delta of the
Böhmörön River south of Baishint (north of the Achit Lake), According to Sushkin, it never was present in the
Üüreg Lake basin, and it was also curiously absent from all the tributaries of the Kobdo river. and on small islands on the Kobdo river.
Habitat: The Khovd river basin is situated in an arid steppe region. The pheasants inhabit sandy soil with willow trees, birch groves, mixed birch-poplar stands,
Caragana and
sea buckthorn bushes, and tall and dense reeds. It mostly resides in tall and dense bushes on the numerous river islands along the Kobdo River, and in dense reeds and sedges at the lake shore of Achit Lake.
Type locality: Restricted type locality, lower Sidemi River. •
Phasianus torquatus pallasi Rothschild, LW 1903 — protonym •
Phasianus torquatus mongolicus Rothschild, LW 1901 — junior synonym •
Phasianus alpherakyi Buturlin, SA 1904 — junior synonym •
Phasianus alpherakyi ussuriensis Buturlin, SA 1904 — junior synonym
Local names: Маньчжурский фазан (Russian: Manchurian Pheasant), Уссурийский фазан (Russian: Ussuri Pheasant), 雉鸡东北亚种 (Chinese: Northeast subspecies of Common Pheasant)
Description: The chest is light brown-red; the flanks are light grass yellow.
P. c. pallasi is darker than
P. c. hagenbecki, with a browner crown and more golden-yellow body plumage; the white spot under the ear-coverts is much more common (in only about 18% of individuals entirely missing) and the black margins of the breast feathers are much less distinct.
P. c. pallasi differs from
P. c. karpowi and
P. c. torquatus in possessing a wider and quite complete white collar, and in the generally lighter coloration of the plumage. The female is similar to that of
P. c. karpowi but lighter, and with a buff colour tinged with reddish on the head, neck and upper part of the chest, and with the internal parts of the marks on mantle and scapulars more rufous.
Measurements: Male wing length (number, range, average): Dementyev: 42: 228–247 mm (233.6 mm).
Distribution: In Russia, it occurs in the
Ussuri basin and the South Ussuri region, reaching in small numbers even to the mouth of the Ussuri, but apparently not rising north of Vladimir Bay along the coast of the Sea of Japan. Clearing of the taiga and overgrowing of cleared areas with bushes facilitates the dispersal of the pheasant to the north and northeast. On the
Amur, it is distributed as far as
Chernyaevo and Ekaterino-Nikolskaya (it used to reach even to Blagoveshchensk), near Kumara it is also found away from the river and it reaches 52°30' N along the valley of the river
Selemdzha. Most of the population is found in the
Zeya-
Bureya depression. Pallas found it also on the
Argun and near
Abagaytuy. It occurs in the
Sungari basin, limited here by the
Greater Khingan. In
Primorye,
P. c. pallasi inhabits mainly the low-mountain western sector, penetrating the foothills and middle parts of the valleys of large rivers, but being completely absent from the mountain forest massif of
Sikhote-Alin; it nests at Borisovskoye (Shufanskoye) basalt plateau in SW Primorye; at lower reaches of
Bikin river basin up to the village of Verkhniy Pereval; up to the upper reaches of
Bolshaya Ussurka (Iman) River basin; almost everywhere in the valley of the middle and lower reaches of the
Ussuri River, on the
Khanka-Razdolnenskaya plain and in the extreme southwest of Primorye; along the coast of the
Sea of Japan, pheasants inhabit all developed river valleys, reaching as far north as the lower reaches of the Serebryanka (Sankhobe) River near the village of
Terney, and irregularly in the lower reaches of the Kema, Amgu (Amagu), and
Samarga rivers; it also nest on large islands in
Peter the Great Bay, such as
Russky,
Popova,
Reineke, and
Putyatina; also on Askold Island, where the birds were introduced in 1875; it also nests on
Furugelm Island. In Manchuria, Yamashima reports in 1939
P. c. pallasi (including the synonym form "
alpherakyi") in
Hulunbuir,
Heihe,
Qiqihar,
Harbin,
Mudanjian,
Ning'an,
Jilin,
Mukden,
Anshan, in the west to
Linxi, and at the Chinese/North Korean border along the Yalu River in Chunggang; along the Tumen River southwest of Musan and in Namyang, in the valley of the
Hunchun River, and at the North Korean coast in
Chongjin and
Wonsan, and further south on the Korean Peninsula to
Kaesong. It also breeds in extreme eastern Mongolia: in the river valleys of Nömrög and Degee in the
Numrug National Park,
Type locality: Te-lin, southern Manchuria. •
Phasianus karpowi Buturlin, SA 1904 — protonym •
Phasianus karpowi buturlini Clark, AH 1907 — junior synonym •
Phasianus torquatus quelpartis Momiyama, T 1926 — junior synonym
Local names: 雉鸡河北亚种 (Chinese: Hebei subspecies of Common Pheasant), 꿩 (Korean: Pheasant), Корейский фазан (Russian: Korean Pheasant)
Description: The crown is olive brown, the white neck collar is broad in front, narrower at the neck, and usually a characteristic "kink" is visible at the sides of the neck, where the collar is broadest (this shape of the neck collar is similar to that for
P. c. pallasi, but the collar is not as high). The white eyebrows are usually distinct, and often tinged in the upper parts with dark rusty or maroon-red . The upper back, sides of breast, flanks, and sides of belly are golden-brown to ochraceous-orange, the feathers of the upper back with dark green shaft wedges and feather margins, the feathers of the upper parts of sides of breast margined dark green, of the lower parts of sides of breast and abdomen with large dark-green spots. The scapulars are broadly edged with dull chocolate-red to purplish-carmine. The breast is fiery copper-red, narrowly edged with dark blue, sometimes just with an apical speck. The rump is brownish olive (in
P. c. pallasi tending to be more greenish lavender-blue). The tail is olive with black bars, and greyish maroon on the side. The male is darker and more richly coloured than that of
P. c. pallasi, and the white collar is narrower, in front 1.2-2.0 cm, in the back 0.4-0.6 cm wide. claims that in birds sold in winter on the market in Chinwangtao (
Qinhuangdao), white ear spots were common; however Hartert and on Taiwan. In Shandong it co-occurs with
P. c. torquatus;
P. c. karpowi is observed in
Binzhou (Donghai, Beihai, and Pucheng Reservoirs), in
Dizhou (Huadian in Qihe County), in
Dongying (Hekou District, and as passage migrant in the Yellow River Delta), at
Jinan Airport, as a summer visitor and passage migrant in Rencheng East Suburb of
Jining, in
Qingdao (Lingshan Island, and as passage migrant on Chaolian Island), in the
Donggang District of
Rizhao (Shijiusuo, Dashan Island, Pingshan Island, and as a summer visitor on Cheniushan Island), in
Yantai, and in
Zibo. In the north, it occurs in the upper reaches of the
Sungari, south to
Liaoyang, and west in the valleys of the lower and middle reaches of the
Liao-he. Occasionally it enters Russia in the southernmost parts of the Ussuri Territory. It intergrades with
P. c. pallasi between 37 N and 40 N on the Korean Peninsula (hybrids have been observed in
Wonsan,
Hamhung,
Kwaksan,
Cheorwon,
Uljin,
Yangju,
Sinuiju), In Beijing, they breed in higher mountainous areas in summer and migrate to plains or foothills in autumn to find food. Near Baihuashan Forest Farm, they migrate to high mountain slopes above 1200 meters during the breeding period. In Liaoning, they mainly inhabit mountainous and hilly grasslands or shrublands, and also frequent valley meadows, forest edge grasslands, or reed marshes. In Northeast China, they migrate to higher mountain areas in summer and move to foothill shrub grasslands, near cultivated land, reed marshes, and hilly shrublands in autumn, where they are frequently seen. After snowfall, they hide in dense grasslands or shrublands in more secluded sparse forests, moving towards sparser shrublands.
Type locality: China, ex Latham. Restricted type locality, southeastern China. •
Phasianus torquatus Gmelin, JF 1789 — protonym •
Phasianus holdereri gmelini Buturlin, SA 1904 — junior synonym
Local names: 雉鸡华东亚种 (Chinese: East China subspecies of Common Pheasant)
Description: Intergrades with
P. c. karpowi and
P. c. kiangsuensis north of Yellow River, with
P. c. strauchi in the
Guangzhong Plain, with
P. c. decollatus near the rapids of
Yichang, In Guizhou, it occurs at altitudes between 250 and 2100 m. In Guangdong, they inhabit shrubby slopes in low hills and mountains, especially preferring to live in thickets and grassy slopes around cultivated land.
Type locality: Langson, Tonkin (Vietnam). •
Phasianus colchicus takatsukasae Delacour, JT 1927 — protonym
Local names: 雉鸡广西亚种 (Chinese: Guangxi subspecies of Common Pheasant), Trĩ đỏ khoang cổ (Vietnamese: Ring-necked Red Pheasant)
Description: Type locality: Type from the market at Chunkingfu, Szechuan (Sichuan, China). •
Phasianus decollatus Swinhoe, R 1870 — protonym •
Phasianus colchicus hemptinnii La Touche, JDD 1919 — junior synonym
Local names: 雉鸡贵州亚种 (Chinese: Guizhou subspecies of Common Pheasant)
Description: In Guizhou, it occurs in
Chishui,
Xishui,
Zunyi,
Suiyang,
Jiangkou,
Guiyang City,
Qingzhen,
Huishui,
Guiding, and
Leishan; in
Xingyi it transitions to
P. c. elegans, and in Huishui and
Pingtang to
P. c. torquatus.
2.4. Formosanus group (Taiwan pheasants) This group is restricted to Taiwan Island. It is similar to the Torquatus group, but males have the white neck ring widely interrupted at front neck, and the flank feathers are characteristically whitish or pure white with black apices and often narrow black margins. The feathers at the chest are broadly fringed black, giving a scaly appearance (this treat they are sharing with
P. c. decollatus and
P. c. hagenbecki of the Torquatus group). The male's wing length averages smaller (~230 mm) than in all subspecies of the Torquatus group.
2.4.1. Phasianus colchicus formosanus (Taiwan grey-rumped pheasant) Authority and original description: Elliot, DG 1870.
Type locality: Formosa (=Taiwan). •
Phasianus formosanus Elliot, D. G. 1870 — protonym
Local name: 環頸雉台灣特有亞種 (Taiwanese: Taiwan endemic subspecies of Ring-necked Pheasant), 雉鸡台湾亚种 (Chinese: Taiwan subspecies of Common Pheasant)
Description: It populates Taiwan, except in the central mountains (in 2004 it was observed in
Fenglin,
Chishang,
Sheding,
Shanhua,
Xinshi,
Shanshang, and
Quinquangang). Ring-necked pheasants were widely distributed in the plains and hills of Taiwan in the 19th century except in the northwestern part of Taiwan. The population was still abundant before the 1950s, but currently it is seriously threatened by hybridisation with Korean grey-rumped pheasant introduced during the period 1960–1970 in the
Jianan Plain of Taiwan for hunting, and by escaped farm birds (including
P. c. karpowi,
P. c. torquatus, and hunting hybrids imported from USA). Due to the dwindling wild population, the
Kenting National Park Administration has been conducting restoration research within the park since 1986, aiming to understand the current distribution of the wild population and the extent of its genetic pollution; in the 1990s,
P. c. formosanus was repeatedly released in the Longzipu area, with a 35-day survival rate of 20%, and not much success. In
Zhiben Wetlands, Taitung, a high nesting density was determined in 2018. By 2023, there were only three relatively stable populations of
P. c. formosanus in Taiwan: on the East side of the island, from
Nan'ao in Yilan to Xianglan in Taitung; and two populations on the West side of the island, one in the South from south of
Chiayi to
Zuoying in Kaohsiung; and one in the North on the
Dadu Plateau in Taichung. In a 2004 study, it was found that the population at Qingquangang (Taichung International Airport) was of pure genotype, whereas 14% of the individuals in the Tainan area had foreign genes, compared to 7-10% on the East side of the island. The population on the Dadu Plateau has been strongly affected by the expanding Taichung International Airport, having necessitated the relocation of birds from the airport, with the help of dogs and tamed goshawks, to the
Dadu River and
Dajia River areas. ==See also==