The Wild Japanese Green Pheasant

"A Family of Pheasants" (キジの一家), created by "Nyanta8355," is a video of a family of Japanese green pheasants, the national bird of Japan.
Japanese green pheasants have a distinctive red wattle and its beauty catches the attention of all that see it. It has a mysterious charm, and it is even believed that they can predict earthquakes.
Japanese green pheasants are a familiar species to Japanese people, as they're in the famous Japanese folk tale Momotaro (桃太郎). The video shows footage of them in the wild.
The article will also introduce the Japanese pheasant, so be sure to follow along with the video as you read on!

The Japanese Green Pheasants

Photo：Japanese green pheasants

Japanese green pheasants (Order: Galliformes, Family: Phasianidae, Genus: Phasianus) that you see in the video, are quite common in Japan, and Japanese people are very familiar with them.

At the start of the video, we see a male Japanese green pheasant, which has a distinctive red wattle and colorful plumage, then at 1:38, we see a female Japanese green pheasant.
As you can tell by the footage, female Japanese green pheasants are not as colorful as male Japanese green pheasants.

The Japanese pheasant is the symbolic bird of Japan and has a majestic appearance befitting of the national bird.
In many municipalities, the pheasant has been designated as the town bird.
As mentioned earlier, the Japanese pheasant is well-known in Japan, as it was one of the characters, along with the dog and monkey, in the Japanese folk tale, Momotaro.
You can also see the bird on the front of the old 10,000 yen bill, which is another reason Japanese people are so familiar with the bird.

As for the size and shape of the Japanese pheasant, the overall length of the male is about 80 cm and the female is about 60 cm.
Male Japanese green pheasants weigh about 0.8 to 1.1 kilograms. Males weigh between 0.8 and 1.1 kilograms and females between 0.6 and 0.9 kilograms.
Ring-necked pheasants, which are widely distributed in Eurasia, are slightly larger than Japanese green pheasants.

Photo：Japanese green pheasants

Male Japanese green pheasants have a red wattle around the eyes, while females have brownish colored plumage. During mating season, the red wattle on a male Japanese green pheasant swells, lets out loud mating calls. Japanese pheasants make loud cries during territorial disputes.

Japanese pheasants are also very wary and will often dash away if they are noticed.
They also live quietly and are not very active outside of spring, so if you want to observe them, spring is the best time to do so.
Japanese green pheasants mainly feed on seeds, sprouts, and leaves.

In Japan, many pheasants are released in bird sanctuaries, fallow hunting areas and additive hunting areas.
This takes place every year during birdwatching week and before the hunting season.

The Various Types of Pheasants

Photo：Japanese green pheasants

Some people believe that the Japanese pheasant, an endemic species in Japan, is a subspecies of Ring-necked pheasants found in Eurasia, and the Ornithological Society of Japan and others have adopted this theory.
Japanese pheasants and ring-necked pheasants are game birds, and pheasant meat is eaten for food.

There are four main subspecies of pheasant distributed in Japan:

The Kyushuu pheasant (kyushukiji, キュウシュウキジ) is found in southwestern Honshu, Kyushu and the Goto Islands; the northern pheasant (kitakiji, キタキジ) inhabits northern Honshu and Sado Island; the Island pheasant (shimakiji, シマキジ) inhabits Honshu, Tanegashima, Izu Oshima, Yakushima and Niijima; and the Tokai pheasant (toukaikiji,トウカイキジ) is found in central Honshu and Shikoku.

Pheasants are mainly found in grasslands, rural areas, forests and flatlands, and sometimes appear in urban areas, causing damage to agriculture and other areas.

Summary of the National Bird of Japan

Source of photo :YouTube screenshot

The video, "A Family of Pheasants," created by "Nyanta8355," shows footage of the Japanese green pheasant, the national bird of Japan!

In the video, you can see the majestic Japanese pheasant in its natural habitat. The appearance of female and male pheasants is completely different, so be sure to check them out.

In Japan, a cat with a pheasant pattern is called a pheasant cat!
From being designated as Japan's national bird to their supposed ability to sense earthquakes, the Japanese pheasant is a fascinating animal!