BirdUp · Species
Common Pheasant
Phasianus colchicusLinnaeus, 1758
Updated
- Order
- GALLIFORMES
- Family
- Phasianidae
- Genus
- Phasianus
At a glance
The Common Pheasant is a very large bird, about 55–110 cm long, listed as Least Concern. It can be seen year-round.
- Size
- 55–110 cm
- Conservation status
- Least Concern
- Origin
- Introduced
- Best seen
- Year-round
- Commonness
- Very common
01 · Identification
How to tell it apart
What does a Common Pheasant look like?
The Common Pheasant is a very large bird, about 55–110 cm long and weighing 851–1660 g.
The common pheasant, ring-necked pheasant, or blue-headed pheasant, is a bird in the pheasant family (Phasianidae). The genus name comes from Latin phasianus 'pheasant'. The species name colchicus is Latin for 'of Colchis', a country on the Black Sea where pheasants became known to Europeans. Although Phasianus was previously thought to be closely related to the genus Gallus, the genus of junglefowl and domesticated chickens, recent studies show that they are in different subfamilies, having diverged over 20 million years ago.
Description · wikipedia · CC BY-SA 4.0
03 · When
When to look
When can you see a Common Pheasant?
The Common Pheasant is present across its Australian range year-round, so it can be seen in any month.
- Jan
- Feb
- Mar
- Apr
- May
- Jun
- Jul
- Aug
- Sep
- Oct
- Nov
- Dec
05 · Behaviour
Habits and haunts
What does a Common Pheasant eat?
The Common Pheasant feeds on fruit, seeds, foliage/herbs, corms/tubers and terrestrial invertebrates, usually foraging in pairs or flocks or alone.
06 · Gallery
Plumage up close
3 photos
The BirdUp app
Log your next Common Pheasant in the field
A pocket field journal for 850+ Australian birds. Offline-first, smart ID, and a lifelist that travels with you.