Golden Pheasant

Males are spectacularly colored with a golden crest, orange and black striped ruff (cape), green upper back, and scarlet underparts. Females are cryptic with mottled brown plumage and black barring for camouflage.

Golden-yellow crest, orange and black 'cape' ruff, scarlet chest, and a tail that accounts for two-thirds of the male's length.

Length: 90-105 cm (males, including long tail); Wingspan: ~70 cm; Weight: 500-700 g.

The male emits a harsh, metallic 'chack-chack' sound during the breeding season.

Omnivorous; feeds on grain, seeds, berries, grubs, and invertebrates found by scratching the ground.

Prefer dense conifer or bamboo forests in mountainous regions, often in scrubby woodlands and forest clearings.

Resident; they do not perform long-distance migrations but may move to lower elevations in winter.

Ground nesters; females lay 8-12 eggs in a shallow scrape hidden by dense vegetation. Incubation lasts about 22-23 days.

Lady Amherst's Pheasant (closely related but has white underparts and a grey/black/white tail).

Acting as seed dispersers and prey for larger carnivores, they play a vital role in the food web of temperate mountain forests.

Least Concern (IUCN); population is stable although declining in some native ranges due to habitat loss.

They are very shy; look for them in dense shrubbery or at forest edges early in the morning when they may emerge to forage.

The Golden Pheasant was long believed to be the inspiration for the mythical Phoenix in Chinese culture due to its vibrant, fire-like colors.