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  Profile

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  In flight

Game Birds

Golden Pheasant

Chrysolophus pictus

• legendary
• 38 km/h
• Least Concern

Native to Chinese mountain forests. The male's cape fans open like a halo when displaying. Pure flex.

Population

Global population not numerically quantified by IUCN/BirdLife DataZone; qualitatively described as fairly common within its native Chinese range, with a decreasing (but not rapid) population trend. A separate introduced UK population, historically estimated at roughly 1,000-2,000 individuals, is now confirmed via BTO BirdFacts to have collapsed further — only ~15 males recorded in the 2010-14 national survey, with the species "too rarely reported... to properly assess" current numbers and considered likely to go extinct in the UK wild soon.

Habitat

Dense mountain forests and woodland with thick shrub and bamboo undergrowth, including dark coniferous/mixed broadleaf forest at roughly 1,000-3,000 m elevation; in winter descends to forest edges near cultivation/human settlements to forage.

Fun fact

Despite their dazzling golden-and-scarlet plumage, Golden Pheasants have weak chest musculature and are poor fliers, preferring to run from danger and only flushing into short, clumsy bursts of flapping flight as a last resort.

Range

Native to mountainous forests of central and western China (Sichuan, Shaanxi, Gansu and surrounding provinces); breeding endemic, non-migratory, extent of occurrence ~1,010,000 km² per BirdLife DataZone. Small introduced/feral populations established historically in the United Kingdom (now very scarce/near-extirpated, centered on Breckland, Norfolk) and reported in scattered locations elsewhere (continental Europe, New Zealand, Hawaii, and other locations per Wikipedia) from aviary escapes.

Diet

Omnivorous ground forager: grain, seeds, leaves, berries, tender shoots of shrubs/bamboo, rhododendron flowers, and occasional invertebrates (ants, beetles, grasshoppers, spiders, earthworms); winter diet shifts heavily toward wheat leaves and seeds.

Size

1 m

Wingspan

0.7 m

Lifespan

6 years