Birds of the World

Phasianidae : Pheasants & Partridges

Green Pheasant

Phasianus versicolor

male - Highland, Scotland - April 2011

Captive-bred Green Pheasants are sometimes released into the wild in Britain by the gamekeepers of some shooting estates. 

male - Highland, Scotland - April 2011

It is very closely related to the Ring-necked Pheasant (P. colchicus) and is sometimes considered conspecific by some authorities due to their propensity to hybridise where the two forms co-exist.  However, in natural circumstances the two species are geographically isolated with Green Pheasant being endemic to Japan, where it is the national bird.

male - Highland, Scotland - April 2011