This is bird note.

Even though the ring-necked pheasant can be found across a large part of the United States,

it isn't actually native to this continent.

Back in 1881, an American living in Shanghai sent a shipment of pheasants from China to Oregon to start a breeding colony. From there, the birds spread throughout

the northwest. Others were introduced to the Midwest and elsewhere in the country. Ring-necked pheasants owe much of their expansion across the continent to their popularity as game birds.

Hunters and birders alike admire the cock pheasants spectacular, ornate feathering.

And for many years, pheasants thrived in the country's rural landscapes.

Small farms offered hay fields and fallow acres to find food, and hedgerows and stands of trees provided cover.

Today though, industrial farming practices leave less and less room for pheasants.

Hedgerows are disappearing.

Weedy cover is burned or sprayed with weed killer.

And nesting sites are lost to more frequent hay mowing or overgrazing by livestock.

But there is hope for wild pheasants.

In some areas of the country, wildlife agencies are working with private landowners to protect the habitat these birds need for feeding, nesting and roosting through the seasons.

For Birdnout, I'm Michael Stein.

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