Vowers Weimaraners And Gamebirds

The following is taken from an article in the American Pheasant and Waterfowl Society's Publication - Article 8 - 2011 written by my good friend Andy Maycen and myself (Scott Vowers)

The Bianchi's Pheasant

Andy Maycen and Scott Vowers

The Bianchi's Pheasant is a subspecies of Phasianus colchicus and is often placed in the subgroup of "White winged Pheasants".  Other members of this group include Zarudny's, Zerafshan, Khivan, Yarkand and Prince of Wales Pheasants.

 Range:

Historically Bianchi's Pheasant have been found near the northern border of Afghanistan and southern Uzbekistan, along the shores of the Amu Darya River.  Currently there is no information on the status of this subspecies’ wild population though one could assume that due to war and it's ensuing habitat destruction along with drought and pesticide usage, it's range and population have no doubt been greatly reduced.

 History in Aviculture:

The Bianchi's Pheasant was originally introduced into the United States in the 1950's.  Subsequent introductions by the Foreign Game Bird Introduction Program took place in the 1960’s and 70’s.   Ultimately pure Bianchi’s were maintained and bred by Steve Faubion and made available to a small number of dedicated aviculturalists.  Many birds are sold in the USA under the misleading name "Afghan White-wing".  This term is often used by misinformed American aviculturalists to describe impure ring-less birds, and should not be confused with the pure Bianchi's.  Birds physically conforming to pure Bianchi's have been released in Bosque Del Apache in New Mexico.  These birds have subsequently crossed with Ring neck Pheasants and judging from numerous photographs available on-line, should not be considered pure.  There are also a small number of Bianchi's kept in European aviaries.  

 Description (see photos):

Bianchi’s is overall one of the smallest of the Phasianus.  Males are richly colored and from a distance have a black gloss with a bluish-green casting in the breast and flank regions.  They are fiery orange dorsally with brilliant white upper wing coverts and a lightly barred tail.  Females are small and ashy cream colored with many darker brown markings.  Neck, upper back and breast have lilac colored overtones.

 In the hand, males are heavily marked below, feathers of the breast and flanks are tipped with a wide square thumb nail shaped band of black glossed with blue-green, often hiding the orange base color.  Head and neck are iridescent green with more blue on the throat. The crown is dark bronzy green with some purple overtones.  Upper parts including scapulars and rump are a fiery chestnut orange color.  Each feather has a terminal black spot glossed with green.  Feathers of the upper back also have black borders giving the upper parts a scaly appearance.  Scapulars are also heavily tipped. In addition there may be some arrow shaped white markings, but these should be minimal, lacking the white "horseshoe" markings prevalent in many other Phasianus subspecies.  Markings on the rump are reduced to a small spot at the tip of each feather.  Wings, except secondary's and primaries, are a brilliant white, those of the lesser wing coverts bordered by a dark chestnut orange with emerald green iridescence.  Tail is a light orange chestnut color, barring is narrow and broadly spaced with bronze- green fringing on both sides. 

 Females are heavily marked above exhibiting a metallic green color on the crown and nape.  In addition, they will have distinct down pointing V shaped “arrows” on both the wing coverts, upper and lower flank regions.  Irises of both sexes are a pale yellow.

 Birds which are suspect of not being pure may show the following traits: Green, grey or blue in the rump, rounded borders to the breast and flank feathers, blue-grey or tan in the upper wing coverts, large size, any white in the collar area, broad tail markings, visible white markings throughout the scapulars, rounded off scapulars as opposed to a nearly rectangular shape.

Captive management

In our experience this bird is best housed in spacious flights with plenty of cover.  Though they have a reputation of being fractious, birds kept in pairs and given adequate space can be quite calm and will incubate and raise their offspring.  As with most Phasianus, they can also be housed with multiple females for each male.  Like all pheasants, Phasianus thrive on a varied diet.  From the development of the chick, to the growth of the juvenile, cumulating with healthy breeding adults producing strong embryos in the egg, diet is very important.  Along with a high quality crumble or pellet, green food such as spinach, Romaine lettuce, and weeds should be fed regularly if not already accessible in the aviary.  Berries, fruits such as cut up apples, melon, and squashes are also helpful in producing strong, healthy birds.  Mealworms and grain fed by hand can also become a treat that will not only benefit the bird nutritionally, but will help gain their trust.  

Sources:

Pfarr, James. "Bianchi's Pheasant." Telephone interview. July 2011

Faubion, Steve. Telephone interview. July 2011

Beebe, William 1990.  A Monograph of the Pheasants. Vol. 3-4: Dover Publications, New York             

Delacour, J. 1977. The Pheasants of the World. 2nd ed., World Pheasant Association and Spur    Publications, Hindhead, U.K.

Gullion, Gordon W. "Critique Concerning Foreign Game Bird Introductions." The Wilson Bulletin 77.4 (1965): 409-14. Web. <http://elibrary.unm.edu/sora/Wilson/v077n04/p0409-p0414.pdf>.



Birds showing Syr Daria Pheasant, Phasianus colchicus turcestanicus traits (in my opinion... I'm not an expert by any means)

Phasianus colchicus torquatus - Chinese Ringneck Pheasant

Northern Versicolor