Golden Pheasant
Chrysolophus pictusAlso known as Chinese Pheasant, Rainbow Pheasant
Golden Pheasants display extraordinary sexual dimorphism, with males sporting a brilliant golden crest, deep scarlet body, and a patterned orange-and-black cape that fans out during courtship displays. Native to the dense, mountainous forests of western and central China, these shy gamebirds spend most of their time foraging on the forest floor for seeds, shoots, and small invertebrates. When startled, they prefer running rapidly into thick brush over taking flight, roosting high in trees only at night to escape ground predators.
- Seeds
- Bamboo Shoots
- Insects
- Martens
- Foxes
- Raptors
- OrderGalliformes
- FamilyPhasianidae
- GenusChrysolophus
- SpeciesChrysolophus pictus
- Low
- Moderate
- High
- Very high
- Why interaction risk is low
- Safe to observe from a normal distance.
- Timing: Look for males foraging along forest edges during early morning and late afternoon.
- Listening: Listen for the loud, metallic chack-chack call made during the spring breeding season.
- Approach: Keep a quiet distance near dense cover to avoid flushing birds into flight.
Found in Collections
Mystic Meadows
Golden Pheasant is found in this collection. Identify it in Fauna to fill this slot and continue your progress.
Unlock to track progress
Report a name, category, or profile issue for review.



