Justification This beautiful pheasant has been subject to excessive sport hunting, which, although now regulated, may still be contributing to the decline. Predation by feral cats and dogs, as well as habitat degradation are other likely drivers. It is consequently categorised as Near Threatened.

Family/Sub-family Phasianidae

Species name author (Temminck, 1830)

Taxonomic source(s) Sibley and Monroe (1990, 1993)

Synonyms Syrmaticus soemmerringi Collar and Andrew (1988)

Population estimate

Population trend

Range estimate (breeding/resident)

Country endemic?

unknown

decreasing

-

Yes

Range & population Syrmaticus soemmerringii is found on the islands of Honshu, Shikoku and Kyushu in Japan. It was once very common, but it appears to have declined substantially because of large-scale hunting and is now considered to be uncommon and difficult to find. During the 1970s, the number of birds shot by hunters declined rapidly from c.800,000 to c.300,000 per year, but appeared to stabilise at c.100,000 per year during the 1990s.

Ecology: It is found in coniferous, broadleaved and mixed forest from sea-level to 1,800 m.

Threats The initial, and perhaps the current, decline was due to hunting, however the shooting of females has been illegal since 1976. In addition to the effects of hunting and habitat loss, feral cats and dogs may be causing a reduction in breeding success, and hybridisation (of the five subspecies) between wild and captive-reared stock may also be a problem.

Conservation measures underway None is known.

Conservation measures proposed Conduct surveys to establish the status of all of the subspecies. Regularly monitor the population at selected sites. Regulate sport hunting to ensure that it is made sustainable. Protect large areas of forest in areas where it occurs. Prevent hybridisation by regulating of releases. Research the effects of feral introduced predators.

References BirdLife International (2001).

Further web sources of information

Fully detailed species accounts from the Threatened birds of Asia: the BirdLife International Red Data Book (BirdLife International 2001), together with new information collated since the publication of the Red Data Book

Text account compilers Joe Benshemesh, Phil Benstead (BirdLife International), Simon Mahood (BirdLife International)

IUCN Red List evaluators Stuart Butchart (BirdLife International), Simon Mahood (BirdLife International)

Recommended citation BirdLife International (2009) Species factsheet: Syrmaticus soemmerringii. Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.org on 9/2/2010

This information is based upon, and updates, the information published in BirdLife International (2000) Threatened birds of the world. Barcelona and Cambridge, UK: Lynx Edicions and BirdLife International, BirdLife International (2004) Threatened birds of the world 2004 CD-ROM and BirdLife International (2008) Threatened birds of the world 2008 CD-ROM. These sources provide the information for species accounts for the birds on the IUCN Red List.

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