Ring-necked Pheasant (Common Pheasant)

This feather belongs to the male Ring-necked Pheasant, a large, ground-dwelling bird known for its iridescent green head, white neck ring, and copper-toned plumage. The feather's dual texture provides both weather protection and warmth.

Base color is a creamy tan/buff; features a distinctive dark brown or black subterminal band (crescent-shaped) and a small dark tip. The downy base is a neutral brownish-gray.

Dual structure: The distal half is pennaceous (flat and structured) with tightly interlocked barbs, while the proximal half is highly plumulaceous (downy and fuzzy) for insulation. Includes a prominent aftershaft.

The patterned tip is smooth and slightly glossy, while the base is extremely soft, airy, and downy to the touch. The overall vane is flexible.

Distinctive crescent-shaped dark banding, rounded tip, and a large proportion of downy base relative to the pennaceous tip.

Open fields, agricultural lands, brushy corridors, grasslands, and forest edges.

Native to Asia; widely introduced across North America, Europe, and parts of Oceania. Primarily resident (non-migratory).

Primary consumer of seeds and insects; serves as a major prey species for larger raptors and carnivorous mammals.

Ruffed Grouse (shorter, different banding) or Wild Turkey (much larger, different tip shape).

Male pheasants are polygynous, often maintaining a harem of several females. They are powerful fliers over short distances, capable of reaching 40 mph when flushed.

Fair to Good. The pennaceous barbs near the tip show some separation (fraying), common in molted ground-bird feathers.