Abstract

ABSTRACT This paper discusses the recent severe decline in the population of Lady Amherst's Pheasant Chrysolophus amherstiae in Britain. Possible causes for the decline are outlined, with habitat change, either through human activity or the natural maturation of conifer plantations, being probably the most significant.his paper reviews the status of Lady Amherst's Pheasant Chrysolophus amherstiae in Britain, from the time of its original introduction to the spring of 2004. It explores possible reasons why this species has seemingly slipped into such irreversible decline that it could be extinct in Britain by 2010, and perhaps before. In support of these key objectives, the paper provides general information about the species in its natural range, and reviews introduction attempts in Britain, focusing principally on Bedfordshire, where the main British population exists.Lady Amherst's Pheasant is a typical forest pheasant, being shy and retiring, and preferring to run for cover rather than take flight. It is best located by the trisyllabic song of the male in spring. Its native range encompasses southwest China and adjoining areas of southeast Tibet and upper Myanmar, where it frequents wooded slopes, bamboos and other thickets or dense bushes, often on rocky ground, generally between 2,100 and 3,600 m, but locally up to 4,600 m in Yunnan. Han et al. (1990) identified deciduous secondary forest and bush as the preВ© British Birds 98 В· January 2005 В· 20-25ferred habitat in Yunnan, and reported a population density of 6.2 birds/km2. In China, it is considered to be an uncommon species,