Temminck's Tragopans (Tragopan temminckii)
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Keeping and Breeding the Temminck's Tragopan Pheasant
The Temminck's Tragopan, Tragopan temminckii is a medium-sized, up to 64cm long, stocky red pheasant with white spotted plumage, black bill and pink legs. It has a bare blue facial skin, inflatable dark blue lappet and horns. The female is a white-spotted brown bird with blue circular eye skin.
Its appearance resembles the Satyr Tragopan, but unlike the latter species it has all red upperbody plumage and orange collar. The diet consists mainly of berries, grass and plants.
Widespread throughout forests of northern South Asia, the Temminck's Tragopan is distributed from northeast India, northwest Vietnam, Tibet and northern provinces of China.
A common species in its large range, the Temminck's Tragopan is evaluated as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
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Keeping and Breeding the Temminck's Tragopan Pheasant
Courtesy of Alan Downie & Zoë A. Hunter
Allandoo Pheasantry - Breeders of Ornamental Pheasants in Southwest Scotland
The Temminck's is one of 5 species of Tragopan pheasant. It is a medium sized pheasant which lives at high altitudes in the Eastern Himalayas, Southern Tibet, Myanmar and some surrounding areas.
Description:
The Temminck's Tragopan cock is an extremely bright coloured bird, mostly a rich shade of orange smothered with whitish ocelli. He has a gorgeous blue face surrounded with black. Like all the Tragopans he has an amazing display and is able to inflate a pair of "horns" from his crown and a bib from the throat. The "bib" or lappet is particularly vivid with red and blue markings.
Housing:
These birds are extremely hardy and are easy to keep in a medium to large aviary. We have pairs which seem perfectly happy in aviaries 24' X 12'. They like some high perches and unlike many pheasants will use an elevated nest box.
Diet:
We give them the same pheasant pellets to eat as the rest of our birds as well as a portion of fruit and berries and a small amount of peanuts and grain.
Breeding:
The birds will breed in their second year and the hen will start to lay in April. Usually 2 - 4 eggs are laid in a clutch and up to 12 eggs in a season. Incubation is normally 28 days.
If you are looking for an unusual bird with a quiet nature which very easily becomes tame you have found what you are looking for with the Temminck's Tragopan. If you have the space to accommodate them they are a pure treasure to keep.
Allandoo Pheasantry
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