The Habitat and Nest-site Selection of Common Pheasants in Spring and Summer in Nanchong, China
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Abstract
From March to June, 2006, the habitat and nest-site selection of the Common Pheasant (Phasianus colchicus) were investigated by direct observation and sampling in the field, at the Taihe Nature Reserve in Nanchong, Sichuan Province. Based on principal component analysis and contrastive analysis, the following was discovered: Common Pheasants' nests were located in areas with a low canopy coverage, near to water, higher herbage with greater coverage, and rich in white cogongrass (Imperata cylindrica) hay. The main factors which affected the nest selection of Common Pheasants are: Gradient>Overall vegetation coverage>Average diameter of trunk>Canopy coverage>Degree of darkness>Distance to water>Distance to road>Average height of shrub>Proportion of hay around nest>Proportion of naked ground>Thickness of vegetation over the nest>Shrub coverage>Width of tussock that the nest is located in. The results indicated as follows: Common Pheasants are more likely to choose habitats with the following conditions: higher shrub coverage, proper gradient and arbor canopy, higher herbage with greater coverage, lower shrub coverage, bigger shrub height, smaller degree of concealment, greater distance to road and greater degree of darkness than the contrastive samples.
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