Field guide to the most commonly encountered mammals and birds

Here, we provide some basic information regarding commonly observed species (plus some others about which we have had queries).  

Feel free to contact us by email if you have any questions regarding species you have encountered on the site.

For more information about mammals, we recommend the Mammal Society's species hub, here. For birds, excellent resources are available from the RSPB (here) and the BTO (here).

 

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Pheasant

 
 

Scientific name: Phasianus colchicus

Family: Phasianidae

Appearance: The adult male common pheasant of the nominate subspecies, Phasianus colchicus colchicus, is 60–89 cm (24–35 in) in length with a long brown streaked black tail, accounting for almost 50 cm (20 in) of the total length. The body plumage is barred bright gold or fiery copper-red and chestnut-brown plumage with iridescent sheen of green and purple; but rump uniform is sometimes blue. The wing coverage is white or cream and black-barred markings are common on the tail. The head is bottle green with a small crest and distinctive red wattle. P. c. colchicus and some other races lack a white neck ring. Behind the face are two ear-tufts, that make the pheasant to alert. The female (hen) and juveniles are much less showy, with a duller mottled brown plumage all over and measuring 50–63 cm (20–25 in) long including a tail of around 20 cm (7.9 in). Juvenile birds have the appearance of the female with a shorter tail until young males begin to grow characteristic bright feathers on the breast, head and back at about 10 weeks after hatching.

Natural history and trivia: Pheasants are native to Asia, but have been introduced to many other places as a game bird, bred and hunted for sport. They are a mostly ground based species, but roost in trees at night. They eat a wide variety of food, from plant matter to small animals like snakes or lizards.

 (C) Ian (shared under a CC BY-NC 2.0 license)

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