The Copper Pheasant, Syrmaticus soemmerringii also known as Soemmerring's Pheasant is a large pheasant with a rich coppery chestnut plumage, yellowish bill, brown iris and red facial skin. The female is a brown bird with greyish brown upperparts and buff barred dark brown below. The male has short spur on its grey legs, none in female. He measures up to 87.5-136 cm (34.5-54 in) long including the tail while the female measures up to 51-54 cm (20-21 in) (subspecies scintillans) including the tail.
The Copper Pheasant is distributed and endemic to the hill and mountain forests of Honshū, Kyūshū and Shikoku islands of Japan, where it is known as yamadori (山鳥?). The diet consists mainly of insects, arthropods, roots, leaves and grains.
The scientific name commemorates the German scientist Samuel Thomas von Sömmerring.
Due to ongoing habitat loss, limited range and overhunting in some areas, the Copper Pheasant is evaluated as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
Read more about Copper Pheasant: Cultural Mentions
Famous quotes containing the words copper and/or pheasant:
“He had put, within his reach,
A box of counters and a red-veined stone,
A piece of glass abraded by the beach,
And six or seven shells,
A bottle with bluebells,
And two French copper coins, ranged there with careful art,”
—Coventry Kersey Dighton Patmore (1823–1896)
“As our domestic fowls are said to have their original in the wild pheasant of India, so our domestic thoughts have their prototypes in the thoughts of her philosophers.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)