Golden Pheasant

The golden pheasant, also known as the Chinese pheasant and rainbow pheasant, is a gamebird of the order Galliformes and family Phasianidae, native to forests in mountainous areas of western China. Carl Linnaeus formally described the species in 1758, initially naming it Phasianus pictus, before it was placed in the genus Chrysolophus. The adult male measures about 100 centimeters, two thirds of it tail, and displays a golden crest and rump, a bright red body, and an orange cape on the back that spreads during display; the hen measures 60 to 80 centimeters with duller mottled brown plumage similar to but darker and more slender than the female common pheasant. Feral populations have become established across Europe, North America, South America, and Oceania.