Nonmigratory Species: Pheasants

Unlike most American game birds, the ring-necked pheasant (Phasianus colchicus) is an immigrant. Native—like the ancestors of domestic chickens—to Asia, they were first imported from China to Oregon’s Willamette Valley in 1881. Eastern pheasants first came from England, from birds descended from birds brought there by first-century Romans. Today’s “American” pheasants are all one species but are descended from birds from China, England, Japan, and Mongolia. They are large, by game bird standards—up to three feet long (most of that being tail feathers)—and typically weigh three to four pounds, or a little less than a frying chicken.