Editing Common pheasant (section)

===North America===
Common pheasants were introduced in North America beginning in 1773,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.pheasant.com/facts.aspx#history|title=Pheasant History and Facts|last=Farm|first=MacFarlane Pheasants - Pheasant Chicks, Mature Birds, America's Largest Pheasant|website=www.pheasant.com|language=en-US|access-date=2017-03-10}}</ref> with the first large-scale successful introduction occurring in 1881 in the [[Williamette Valley]] of [[Oregon]], followed by [[Washington (state)|Washington]] in 1883 and [[California]] in 1889. Stocking of large pheasant populations in the plains and eastern states occurred in following decades after successful hunting seasons were recorded in the western states.<ref name="Edminster1954">{{cite book |last=Edminster |first=Frank Custer |date=1954 |title=American Game Birds of Field and Forest: Their Habits, Ecology, and Management |chapter=The Ring-necked Pheasant |location=New York |publisher=Scribner |pages=1–5 |isbn= |url=https://archive.org/details/americangamebird0000edmi |access-date=20 May 2025}}</ref> Pheasants have become well established throughout much of the [[Rocky Mountains|Rocky Mountain]] states ([[Colorado]], [[Idaho]], [[Montana]], [[Wyoming]], etc.), the [[Midwest]], the [[Great Plains|Plains]] states, as well as [[Canada]] and [[Mexico]].<ref name=OregonLive/><ref name=pheasantsforever/>  In the southwest, they can even be seen south of the Rockies in [[Bosque del Apache]] National Wildlife Refuge {{Convert|161|km|mi|abbr=on}} south of Albuquerque, New Mexico.<ref name=Long1981/><ref name=BIE/> The largest populations of pheasants in the United States occur in a continuous belt over the [[Great Plain]]s, the [[Corn Belt]] and the [[Wheat_production_in_the_United_States#Geography|Wheat Belt]], with extensions of its range reaching into southern [[Canada]] and the farmland areas of [[New England]]. Smaller populations occur in valleys and irrigated areas through the [[Intermountain West]] and the coast states, although these are separated by high mountain areas inhospitable to pheasants. Introductions failed in the more humid Southern states and in the [[American Southwest]].<ref name="Edminster1954"/>

Common pheasants have also been introduced to [[Hawaiian Islands]], [[Chile]], [[Uruguay]], [[Peru]], [[Argentina]], [[Brazil]], [[South Africa]], [[New Zealand]], and [[Australia]], including the island state of [[Tasmania]] and small offshore islands such as [[Rottnest Island]] off Western Australia.<ref name=Long1981/><ref name=BIE/>

Most common pheasants bagged in the United States are wild-born feral pheasants.{{Citation needed|date= May 2014}} In some states<ref name=Ohio/> captive-reared and released birds make up much of the population.<ref name=Robertson1997p125/>

Pheasant hunting is very popular in much of the US, especially in the Great Plains states, where a mix of farmland and native grasslands provides ideal habitat. South Dakota alone has an annual harvest of over 1 million birds a year by over 200,000 hunters.<ref name=SD/>

==== Negative impacts on other birds ====
There are a number of negative effects of common pheasants on other game birds, including: [[Brood parasite|nest parasitism]], disease, aggression, and competition for resources.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last1=Hallett |first1=Diana L. |last2=Edwards |first2=William R. |last3=Burger |first3=George V. |url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/19288751 |title=Pheasants : symptoms of wildlife problems on agricultural lands |date=1988 |publisher=North Central Section of the Wildlife Society |oclc=19288751}}</ref>&nbsp; Nest parasitism, or [[Brood parasite|brood parasitism]], is common in pheasants because of their propensity to nest near other birds and the fact that nesting requirements are similar to those of other prairie birds and [[waterfowl]] that inhabit the same areas.&nbsp; This phenomenon has been observed in [[grey partridge]]s; [[Tympanuchus|prairie chicken]]s; several types of [[duck]], rail, [[grouse]], [[Turkey (bird)|turkey]]s, and others.<ref name=":0" />&nbsp; Effects of nest parasitism may include abandonment of nests with a high proportion of foreign eggs, lower hatching rates, and lower numbers of eggs laid by the host species. Pheasant eggs also have a shorter incubation time than many of their nestmates, which may result in the individual watching over the nest to abandon her own eggs after the pheasants hatch, thinking that the remaining eggs are not viable.<ref name=":0" />&nbsp; Pheasants raised in other species' nests often imprint on their caretaker, which may result in them adopting atypical behaviour for their species. This is sometimes the cause of hybridisation of species as pheasants adopt the mating behaviour of their nest's host species.<ref name=":0" />

Pheasants often compete with other native birds for resources. Studies have shown that they can lead to decreased populations of [[Colinus|bobwhite]]s and [[partridge]]s due to habitat and food competition.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Errington|first=Paul L.|date=1945-01-01|title=Some Contributions of a Fifteen-Year Local Study of the Northern Bobwhite to a Knowledge of Population Phenomena|url=http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/1943293|journal=Ecological Monographs|volume=15|issue=1|pages=2–34|doi=10.2307/1943293|jstor=1943293|bibcode=1945EcoM...15....1E |issn=0012-9615}}</ref> Insects are a valuable food source for both pheasants and partridges and competition may lead to decreased populations of partridges.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Potts|first=G. R.|date=June 1970|title=Recent Changes in the Farmland Fauna with Special Reference to the Decline of the Grey Partridge|journal=Bird Study|volume=17|issue=2|pages=145–166|doi=10.1080/00063657009476266|issn=0006-3657|doi-access=free|bibcode=1970BirdS..17..145P }}</ref> Pheasants may also introduce disease, such as [[Histomoniasis|blackhead]], to native populations. While pheasants tolerate the infection well, other birds such as [[ruffed grouse]], [[Chukar partridge|chukar]], and grey partridge are highly susceptible.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Lund|first1=Everett E.|last2=Chute|first2=Anne M.|date=January 1972|title=The Ring-Necked Pheasant (Phasianus colchicus torquatus) as a Host for Heterakis gallinarum and Histomonas meleagridis|url=http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/2423877|journal=American Midland Naturalist|volume=87|issue=1|pages=1–7|doi=10.2307/2423877|jstor=2423877|issn=0003-0031|url-access=subscription}}</ref> Pheasants also have a tendency to harass or kill other birds. One study noted that in pheasant vs. prairie chicken interactions, the pheasants were victorious 78% of the time.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Vance |first1=D.Russel |last2=Westemeier |first2=Ronald L. |url=http://worldcat.org/oclc/870462218 |title=Interactions of Pheasants and Prairie Chickens in Illinois. |date=1979 |oclc=870462218}}</ref>

==== Management strategies ====
A variety of management strategies have been suggested for areas that are home to species that are particularly threatened by pheasants, such as the prairie chickens and grey partridge. These strategies include mowing grass to decrease the nesting cover preferred by pheasants, decreasing pheasant roosting habitat, shooting pheasants in organised hunts, trapping and removing them from areas where there are high concentrations of birds of threatened species, and others.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Westemeier|first=R. L.|title=Perdix III: gray partridge/ring-necked pheasant workshop|publisher=Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources|year=1983|location=Madison, WI|pages=117–122}}</ref>

==== Population change ====
While pheasant populations are not in any danger, they have been decreasing in the United States over the last 30 years, largely in agricultural areas.<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal|last1=Coates|first1=Peter S.|last2=Brussee|first2=Brianne E.|last3=Howe|first3=Kristy B.|last4=Fleskes|first4=Joseph P.|last5=Dwight|first5=Ian A.|last6=Connelly|first6=Daniel P.|last7=Meshriy|first7=Matt G.|last8=Gardner|first8=Scott C.|date=2017-03-15|title=Long-term and widespread changes in agricultural practices influence ring-necked pheasant abundance in California|url= |journal=Ecology and Evolution|volume=7|issue=8|pages=2546–2559|doi=10.1002/ece3.2675|pmid=28428846|pmc=5395463|bibcode=2017EcoEv...7.2546C |issn=2045-7758}}</ref> This is likely due to changes in farming practices, application of [[pesticide]]s, [[habitat fragmentation]], and increased predation due to changes in crops grown.&nbsp; Many crops beneficial for pheasants (such as [[barley]]) are not being farmed as much in favour of using the land for more lucrative crops, such as nut trees.&nbsp; Many of these new crops are detrimental to pheasant survival.<ref name=":1" /> Pheasants prefer to nest in areas of significant [[Herbaceous plant|herbaceous]] cover, such as [[Perennial plant|perennial]] grasses, so many agricultural areas are not conducive to nesting anymore.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Dwight|first1=Ian A.|last2=Vogt|first2=Jessica H.|last3=Coates|first3=Peter S.|last4=Fleskes|first4=Joseph P.|last5=Connelly|first5=Daniel P.|last6=Gardner|first6=Scott C.|date=2020|title=Linking nest microhabitat selection to nest survival within declining pheasant populations in the Central Valley of California|journal=Wildlife Research|volume=47|issue=5|pages=391|doi=10.1071/wr18199|s2cid=220834643|issn=1035-3712|doi-access=free|bibcode=2020WildR..47..391D }}</ref> Pheasant hens also experience higher levels of [[predation]] in areas without patches of grassland.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Schmitz|first1=Richard A.|last2=Clark|first2=William R.|date=January 1999|title=Survival of Ring-Necked Pheasant Hens during Spring in Relation to Landscape Features|url=http://dx.doi.org/10.2307/3802495|journal=The Journal of Wildlife Management|volume=63|issue=1|pages=147|doi=10.2307/3802495|jstor=3802495|issn=0022-541X|url-access=subscription}}</ref>

In the United Kingdom, about 50 million pheasants reared in captivity are now released each summer, a number which has significantly increased since the 1980s.<ref>{{cite news |last=Dalton |first=Jane |date=31 October 2020 |title= Game-bird shooting will need licences, ministers announce – days before legal battle|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/game-bird-shoot-licence-license-pheasant-partridge-chris-packham-b1457063.html |work= [[The Independent]]|access-date=28 November 2020}}</ref>  Most of these birds are shot during the open season (1 October to 1 February), and few survive for a year.  The result is a wildly fluctuating population, from 50 million in July to less than 5 million in June.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.whatthesciencesays.org/estimating-the-number-and-biomass-of-pheasants-in-britain/|publisher=What the Science Says|title=Estimating the number and biomass of pheasants in Britain|date=14 July 2020|access-date=28 November 2020}}</ref>