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Species authority page

Green pheasant

Phasianus versicolor · Upland game birds

Green pheasant (Phasianus versicolor): Male: dark green breast, neck, mantle and flanks, bluish-purplish hood with ear tufts, red wattles, long pale grey-banded tail. Female: smaller than male, shorter tail, brownish-black with dark brown feathers fringed pale brown. This profile does not establish whether taking it is legal anywhere.

Check rules for a place and dateOpen the green pheasant map

Certified rules currently represented in Hunt: coverage in development. This is coverage, not a legal answer.

Green pheasant flapping its wings in grass
Adobe Stock · Free asset, Standard License (asset 814198252)
Scientific name
Phasianus versicolor
Family
Phasianidae
In North America
Introduced
Range
Native to Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu and smaller Japanese islands; introduced populations in Hawaii are reported stable; introduction to mainland North America was unsuccessful, and it has been crossed with common pheasants on some North American game farms.
Biology

How to identify it

Male: dark green breast, neck, mantle and flanks, bluish-purplish hood with ear tufts, red wattles, long pale grey-banded tail. [1][2][3]

Female: smaller than male, shorter tail, brownish-black with dark brown feathers fringed pale brown. [1][2][3]

Compared with the ring-necked pheasant: Considered by some authorities the same species; Hawaii records also mention a melanistic 'mutant' or blue form of ring-necked pheasant that can resemble green pheasant. [1][2][3]

Species it is confused with

Check these before deciding what you are looking at. If you are not certain what it is, do not shoot.

Field notes

  • Identification Confirm a green pheasant before you act. Compared with the ring-necked pheasant: Considered by some authorities the same species; Hawaii records also mention a melanistic 'mutant' or blue form of ring-necked pheasant that can resemble green pheasant.[1][2][3]
Field knowledge

Where it lives

Woodland and forest edges, brush, grassland and parkland. [1][2][3]

Field knowledge

How it behaves

Omnivorous: worms, insects, grains and plants [1][2][3]

Breeds March-June, 6-15 eggs incubated 23-25 days [1][2][3]

Regulatory handoff

Where it is listed for legal take

These authorities list this species for legal take in their own regulations.

Where legal take is listed

Being listed is not an open season. Seasons, zones, licences, methods and limits decide whether this animal may be taken on a given day and place — check Hunt or the authority before you go. Listings read 2026-09-30.

Geospatial intelligence

Where it is found

Native to Honshu, Shikoku, Kyushu and smaller Japanese islands; introduced populations in Hawaii are reported stable; introduction to mainland North America was unsuccessful, and it has been crossed with common pheasants on some North American game farms.

Biology

Sources

Every claim above is attributed to one of these published sources.

  1. BIOLOGICALGreen pheasant

    Wikipedia · reviewed 2026-09-30

    Wikipedia

  2. Bishop Museum (The Birds of the Hawaiian Islands) · reviewed 2026-09-30

    Bishop Museum (The Birds of the Hawaiian Islands)

  3. Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources · reviewed 2026-09-30

    Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources