The golden pheasant or Chinese pheasant (Chrysolophus pictus) is a gamebird of the order Galliformes (gallinaceous birds) and the family Phasianidae (pheasants). The genus name is from Ancient Greek khrusolophos, "with golden crest", and pictus is Latin for "painted" from pingere, "to paint"
It is native to forests in mountainous areas of western China, but feral populations have been established in the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States, Mexico, Colombia, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, the Falkland Islands, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, France, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. In England they may be found in East Anglia in the dense forest landscape of the Breckland as well as Tresco on the Isles of Scilly.

Description
Male and female Golden Pheasants look different in appearance. Males measure 90 – 105 centimetres in length with the tail making up two thirds of the total length. Females are slightly smaller measuring 60 – 80 centimetres in length with the tail making up half of the total length. Their wingspan is around 70 centimetres and they weigh around 630 grams.

Male Golden Pheasants can be easily identified by their bright colouring. They have a golden crest tipped with red which extends from the top of their heads, down their necks. They have bright red underparts, dark coloured wings and a pale brown, long, barred tail. Their rumps are also golden, upper backs are green and they have bright yellow eyes with a small black pupil. Their face, throat and chin are a rust colour and their wattles and orbital skin are yellow. Beak, legs and feet are also yellow.

Female Golden Pheasants are less colourful and more duller than males. They have a mottled brown plumage, pale brown face, throat, breast and sides, pale yellow feet and are more slender in appearance.

DIET
Golden Pheasants mainly feed on the ground on grain, invertebrates, berries, grubs and seeds as well as other kinds of vegetation

GOLDEN PHEASANT BEHAVIOUR
Golden Pheasants are very timid birds and will hide in dark, dense forests and woodlands during the day and roost in very high trees during the night. Golden Pheasants often forage on the ground despite their ability to fly, this may be because they are quite clumsy in flight. However, if they are startled, they are capable of taking off in a sudden fast upward motion with a distinctive wing sound.

Little is known about their behaviour in the wild as although the males are very colourful birds, they are difficult to spot. The best time to possibly observe a Golden Pheasant is very early in the morning when they may be seen in clearings.

Vocalisations include a ‘chack chack’ sound. Males have a distinctive metallic call during the breeding season. Also, during the males elaborate courtship display, he will spread his neck feathers over his head and beak, like a cape.

REPRODUCTION OF THIS SPECIES:
The laying occurs in April.
The Golden Pheasant builds its nest on the ground in dense brush and bushes, or in tall grass. This is a shallow depression lined with plant materials.

The female lays 5-12 eggs and incubates during 22-23 days.
At hatching, the chicks are covered in rufous-brown down above with pale buff bars, and buffy-white below. They are precocial and can move and feed very soon. They usually follow the adult to the food sources and then, peck at food on their own.
Catalan: Faisà daurat
Czech: Bažant zlatý
Welsh: Ffesant euraid
Danish: Guldfasan
German: Goldfasan
English: Golden Pheasant
English (IOC): Golden Pheasant
Spanish: Faisán Dorado
Spanish (Spain): Faisán Dorado
Spanish (HBW): Faisán dorado
Estonian: kuldfaasan
Finnish: Kultafasaani
French: Faisan doré
Irish: Piasún órga
Hebrew: פסיון זהוב
Croatian: Zlatni fazan
Hungarian: aranyfácán
Icelandic: Gullfasani
Italian: Fagiano dorato
Japanese: kinkei
Japanese: キンケイ
Scientific: Chrysolophus pictus, Phasianus pictus
Lithuanian: Auksinis fazanas
Latvian: zelta fazāns
Dutch: Goudfazant
Norwegian Nynorsk: Gullfasan
Norwegian: Gullfasan
Polish: bazant zlocisty, bażant złocisty, Bażant złotocisty
Portuguese: Faisão-dourado
Portuguese (Portugal): Faisão-dourado
Russian: золотистый фазан, Золотой фазан
Slovak: Bažant zlatý
Slovenian: zlati fazan
Serbian: Zlatni fazan
Swedish: Guldfasan
Turkish: Altın Sülün
Ukrainian: Фазан золотий
Chinese: 红腹锦鸡
Chinese (Traditional): 紅腹錦雞


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