The Copper Pheasant, Syrmaticus soemmerringii also known as Soemmerring's Pheasant is a large, up to 136cm long, 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.

The Copper Pheasant is distributed and endemic to the hill and mountain forests of Honshū, Kyūshū and Shikoku islands of Japan. The diet consists mainly of insects, arthropods, roots, leaves and grains.

The scientific name commemorates the German scientist Samuel Thomas von Sömmering.

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.

References

• Database entry includes a brief justification of why this species is near threatened

External links

• BirdLife Species Factsheet
• IUCN Red List
• Red Data Book