At a Glance
The Vietnam Pheasant is a striking bird. The males have vibrant iridescent blue plumage with a white crest. Female pheasants are a deep golden chestnut color, which helps them blend in with the soil of the forest floor. The species was last seen in Vietnam in 2000. In the decades since the Vietnam War ended, expanding agriculture and urbanization due to quickly growing human populations has destroyed much of the Vietnam Pheasant’s habitat. Although there are no pheasants likely still living in the wild, there are conservation breeding programs and some birds from those programs have been sent to a new breeding facility in Vietnam that will be reintroduced to the wild. There are also efforts to prevent poaching with snares in the lowland forests where the pheasant historically lived to help give the species the best chance of recovering.
At a glance
Taxa
Birds
Geography
Vietnam
Status
Critically Endangered
Habitat
rainy, evergreen, lowland forests
Estimated Population
Approximately 500 in human care; believed to be extinct in the wild
Threats
Habitat destruction; habitat degradation from wartime defoliation; snare hunting
Potential Recovery Actions
Conservation breeding, reintroductions, connecting habitats, boosting genetic diversity, curbing snare-hunting
