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Pheasants and Partridges (Phasianidae)

Ring-necked Pheasant (Phasianus colchicus) - HBW 2, p. 542

French: Faisan de Colchide German: Fasan Spanish: Faisán Vulgar
Other common names: Common Pheasant

Taxonomy: Phasianus colchicus Linnaeus, 1758, Africa, Asia = Rion River.
Sometimes considered conspecific with P. versicolor, which is thus relegated to subspecies level; however, the two are not now generally regarded as conspecific, because present species, when introduced to Japan, is apparently unable to survive, presumably due to competition with P. versicolor, and failure to hybridize successfully; nevertheless, they hybridize extensively where both introduced in Hawaii. Internal taxonomy of species requires extensive revision. Populations of E Asia sometimes considered to constitute a separate species, P. torquatus. Races currently acc.. View all taxonomy...

Taxonomy: Phasianus colchicus Linnaeus, 1758, Africa, Asia = Rion River.
Sometimes considered conspecific with P. versicolor, which is thus relegated to subspecies level; however, the two are not now generally regarded as conspecific, because present species, when introduced to Japan, is apparently unable to survive, presumably due to competition with P. versicolor, and failure to hybridize successfully; nevertheless, they hybridize extensively where both introduced in Hawaii. Internal taxonomy of species requires extensive revision. Populations of E Asia sometimes considered to constitute a separate species, P. torquatus. Races currently accepted can be split into five or six groups, which may be a better guide to geographical variation. Thirty one subspecies recognized.

Subspecies and Distribution:

  • septentrionalis Lorenz, 1888 - N Caucasus.
  • colchicus Linnaeus, 1758 - Transcaucasia, in E Georgia, NE Azerbaijan, S Armenia and NW Iran.
  • talischensis Lorenz, 1888 - SE Transcaucasia.

     See all 31 subspecies
  • septentrionalis Lorenz, 1888 - N Caucasus.
  • colchicus Linnaeus, 1758 - Transcaucasia, in E Georgia, NE Azerbaijan, S Armenia and NW Iran.
  • talischensis Lorenz, 1888 - SE Transcaucasia.
  • persicus Severtsov, 1875 - SW Transcaspia.
  • bergii Zarudny, 1914 - islands of Aral Sea.
  • turcestanicus Lorenz, 1896 - Kazakhstan (valley of R Syrdar'ya).
  • mongolicus J. F. Brandt, 1844 - NE Russian Turkestan.
  • principalis P. L. Sclater, 1885 - S Russian Turkestan and N Afghanistan.
  • chrysomelas Severtsov, 1875 - Turkestan (upper R Amud ar'ya).
  • zerafschanicus Tarnovski, 1893 - S Uzbekistan (Bukhara, Zerafshan Valley).
  • zarudnyi Buturlin, 1904 - Turkestan (valleys of C Amud ar'ya).
  • bianchii Buturlin, 1904 - Turkestan (Amud ar'ya Delta).
  • shawii Elliot, 1870 - Chinese Turkestan.
  • tarimensis Pleske, 1888 - CE Chinese Turkestan.
  • hagenbecki Rothschild, 1901 - NW Mongolia.
  • edzinensis Sushkin, 1926 - SC Mongolia.
  • satscheuensis Pleske, 1892 - NC China (extreme W Gansu).
  • vlangallii Przevalski, 1876 - NC China (N Qinghai).
  • alaschanicus Alphéraky & Bianchi, 1908 - NC China (W foothills of Helan Shan).
  • sohokhotensis Burtulin, 1908 - NC China (Sohokhoto Oasis in Helan Shan; possibly also this race in Qilian Shan).
  • pallasi Rothschild, 1903 - SE Siberia and NE China.
  • karpowi Buturlin, 1904 - NE China (S Manchuria and N Hebei) and Korea.
  • kiangsuensis Buturlin, 1904 - NE China (N Shanxi and Shaanxi) and SE Mongolia.
  • strauchi Przevalski, 1876 - C China (S Shaanxi and S & C Gansu).
  • suehschanensis Bianchi, 1906 - WC China (NW Sichuan).
  • elegans Elliot, 1870 - WC China (W Sichuan).
  • decollatus Swinhoe, 1870 - C China (Sichuan E to W Hubei and S to NE Yunnan and Guizhou).
  • torquatus Gmelin, 1789 - E China (Shandong S to China Vietnam border).
  • rothschildi La Touche, 1922 - SC China (E Yunnan) and N Vietnam.
  • takatsukasae Delacour, 1927 - S China (S Guangxi) and N Vietnam.
  • formosanus Elliot, 1870 - Taiwan.
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