Syrmaticus mikado

The male's head, neck and upper back are purple-blue; the upper back has broad steel-blue feather edges and black sagittal subterminal spots. The lower back and waist are thick black with metallic blue feather edges; the upper wing coverts are also the same, only slightly mixed with white spots, but generally not exposed. The large coverts have broad white terminal spots, forming a conspicuous white horizontal band on the wings. The primary flight feathers are dark brown, and the secondary and tertiary flight feathers are also black with narrow white tips. The upper tail coverts are black with white spots; the tail feathers are 16, very long and wedge-shaped. The central tail feather is the longest and gradually becomes shorter towards both sides. The color is black, and the sparse cover has several white horizontal spots. The chest is dark blue and shiny. The belly is black, and the lower tail coverts are also black with narrow white edges.
The head and neck of the female bird

The black-tailed pheasant is distributed in the central mountains of Yilan, Taoyuan, Hsinchu, Miaoli, Taichung, Nantou, Chiayi, Hualien, Kaohsiung, Pingtung, and Taitung counties in Taiwan, China.
It inhabits the coniferous and broad-leaved mixed forests and the bottom thickets of coniferous forests at medium and high altitudes of 1,800 to 3,800 meters. However, a survey conducted in Yushan National Park found that the most frequent sightings were at an altitude of 2,300 to 2,550 meters, and it prefers to move around in areas with steeper slopes (between 30 and 60 degrees). It is also found in secondary forests and artificial afforestation areas. In winter, it migrates to lower altitudes.

The black long-tailed pheasant is called Mikado Pheasant in English. It has no subspecies and is a large chicken.

The black-tailed pheasant is active in places where the surface plants and fallen leaves on the forest road are covered, and it also walks on steep cliffs. It is mostly active alone and does not gather in groups. The activity time is mostly during the double peak hours, which are 5 to 6 in the morning and 6 to 7 in the afternoon in the Guangao area, and 7 to 8 in the morning and 4 to 5 in the afternoon in the Ruiyanxi Nature Reserve. They like to come out most when it rains lightly, moderately, foggy or cloudy. When walking, they hold their heads high and walk slowly, making few sounds, cautious and alert. If they find someone, the female bird will immediately flee or fly away quickly, and at the same time make a "coo, coo, coo" sound; the male bird's reaction is relatively calm, and it will stay in place for a moment, then walk forward slowly. If the distance is too close, it will immediately rush into the dense weeds, or fly downhill quickly, and at the same time make a sharp cry. At this time, the tail feathers are spread out in a fan shape, and the flapping sound is very loud. If they walk together in pairs to find food, they are not far away from each other. Usually, the male bird will accompany the female bird or follow behind, always keeping a state of vigilance, playing the role of a guardian, and the female bird can find food with peace of mind. When encountering an enemy or observer, the male bird often holds its head high, puffs out its feathers, and makes a rapid warning sound. It walks slowly to an open area to attract the attention of the intruder, and waits until the female bird calmly enters the bush before escaping in different directions. When walking fast, the head shakes back and forth, the tail feathers hang down, and it rarely flies away in surprise.

The black long-tailed pheasant will stay in the tree at night. Generally, it will fly up the tree in the evening, sometimes jumping from one branch to another, but each tree roosting place is not fixed. In the morning, it jumps from the tree to the ground to forage for food. When jumping down, the body leans forward and the tail feathers are spread out.

The black long-tailed pheasant is an omnivorous animal. When foraging, they use their beaks to directly peck at new leaves, young shoots, flowers, various berries, and grass seeds of plants on the ground. They also often use their beaks or claws to dig up fallen leaves or humus on the ground while walking, and then use their beaks to peck at earthworms, ants, butterfly larvae, and other insects in the soil. They also peck at small stones on the ground.

The calls of the black-tailed pheasant do not vary much. The following are some of the sounds that are often heard: (1) A continuous low "click, click, click" sound. This kind of call is made when walking, when the female bird is carrying its young, when someone is following it, or when it is startled and flees. (2) When it lowers its head to look for food, it makes a low "hmm, hmm" sound, sometimes followed by a "Sui—" sound. (3) When it is startled, feels threatened, or flees, it makes a sharp and loud "Kui—", "Sui—", "Ka—", "Chieu—" sound. When it is being watched, it makes "Ji Gu" and "Sui—Sui—Yi" sounds.

The breeding season of the black long-tailed pheasant is between April and August. Most scholars (Ou Baoluo et al. 1990, Yao Zhengde et al. 1998) observed that the number of male and female activities in pairs is relatively high in the early breeding period, and speculated that its marriage is monogamous. However, some scholars (Delacour 1951, Stokes & Williams 1971) believe that their marriage is polygamous. The breeding pairing may be completed in October or November every year.

The estrus period begins in mid-March and lasts until June. Before breeding, female birds gain weight significantly, probably to prepare for the huge physical energy required for laying and incubating eggs. During courtship in spring, male birds will fight for territory and mates. During the fight, two male birds stand facing each other with their chests raised. One of them suddenly moves forward, and the other jumps up. When it lands, the one that moves forward jumps up immediately, jumping up and down with each other. Sometimes both jump up at the same time, using claws as weapons to attack each other, and then land at the same time. At this time, the female bird does not help anyone, but just watches the fight. When the male bird is in heat, the wattles on its face are bright red, and it stands upright, stretches its neck and chest, and spreads its wings towards the female bird, fluttering its wings quickly and continuously.

The molting of mature male birds is completed between July and October, which is an important period for female birds to raise young birds. When the male bird completes its molting and shows a bright new feather, it is the time for the young bird to leave the female bird, allowing the female bird to return to being single, and it is also the time for mature male and female birds to mate again.

The black long-tailed pheasant usually builds its nest on the ground or on a tree trunk. The nest is located in a depression facing a steep slope, or a hollow under a rock, or in a tree hole at the base of a tree trunk on the upper edge of a steep slope. It is very hidden. The nest material is mostly dead branches and fallen leaves collected locally, lined with feathers. The egg-laying period is from the end of March to the beginning of April. Each nest lays 3 to 5 eggs. The eggs are milky white to light brown, weigh 48.45 grams, and have an average size of 40.7×55.0 mm. The female bird is solely responsible for incubation, and the male bird does not participate in the work of raising the chicks. When the female bird is incubating the eggs, she will stand up, turn around, look around, peck at the nesting materials, comb feathers, and turn over the eggs. In bad weather such as thunderstorms, the female bird will not leave the nest all day. The incubation period is about 28 days. At the end of June, the female bird can be seen foraging for food with the young birds on the forest road. When walking slowly on the road, the female bird will always be alert. The young birds follow her around and peck at the seeds of plants on the ground. Within two weeks after the chicks hatch, the female bird will let the chicks crawl under the female bird's wings in the nest or in a hidden place near the nest to spend the night (Yao Zhengde 1996). During this period of activity with the young birds, they have no fixed direction, but wander around and gradually move away from the nest area. By August or September, the young bird has grown to be about the same size as the female bird. As it grows, it becomes increasingly alienated from the female bird, and eventually lives independently and can spend the night in a tree. However, the female bird will return to the vicinity of the original nest before the next breeding.

More than 90 years ago, a British bird specimen collector came to the mountainous area of Taiwan, China, and encountered a group of mountain people. He found that they had two black feathers about 50 cm long with irregular spots on their headdresses. Although the British man traveled all over the country, he had never seen such special feathers. Later, he spent some money to "pick" the feathers from the mountain people's headdresses and sent them back to the UK. After relevant scientific researchers competed to study, the research report showed that the "owner" of the feathers was a new bird species, which aroused great interest in this mysterious bird species among many ornithologists. Not long after, the British man went to Taiwan, China to continue his search, but he was beaten by the Japanese. The first live Imperial Pheasant was finally captured near Tashan, Alishan, Taiwan, China. The Japanese immediately presented this rare product to the Emperor and named it "Imperial Pheasant", and its scientific name should be Long-tailed Pheasant.

In a museum in Kenya, Africa, pictures of endangered and extinct wild animals from all over the world are displayed, including the Imperial Pheasant of my country. Under this picture, there is a commentary: "This is a rare bird unique to Taiwan, China. The British have successfully bred it in the UK and sent it back to its place of origin. Unfortunately, due to the indifference of the local government and the ignorance of the people, their fate in the local area is in jeopardy." Japan's NHK TV station once sent people to Taiwan, China to shoot footage of the Imperial Pheasant in the wild. They took great pains and racked their brains, but in the end they retreated in vain. Ordinary people can only go to zoos and private bird parks to see the dignity of the Imperial Pheasant.

The global population of the black-tailed pheasant is not quantified, but it is described as a common species. There are about 10,000 birds in Yushan National Park (Madge &McGowan 2002), which accounts for a significant proportion of the bird's population. The global population is estimated to be 10,000-19,999, with an estimated adult population of 6,667-13,333. There are an estimated 100-10,000 breeding pairs in Taiwan. Population trend data are scarce, and the population may be in decline due to hunting and habitat loss.

Listed in Appendix I of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

Listed in the "National Key Protected Wildlife List": National First-Class Protected Animal (effective December 10, 1988).

Listed in the "IUCN Red List of Endangered Species": Near Threatened Species (NT), assessed in 2012.

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