• Summary
• Text account
• Data table and detailed info
• Distribution map
• Reference and further resources

Taxonomic source(s)
del Hoyo, J., Collar, N.J., Christie, D.A., Elliott, A. and Fishpool, L.D.C. 2014. HBW and BirdLife International Illustrated Checklist of the Birds of the World. Volume 1: Non-passerines. Lynx Edicions BirdLife International, Barcelona, Spain and Cambridge, UK.

Red List criteria met

Critically Endangered	Endangered	Vulnerable
-	-	-

Red List history

Year	Category	Criteria
2023	Least Concern
2016	Near Threatened	B1ab(iii); C1+2a(i)
2012	Near Threatened	B1ab(iii);C1+2a(i)
2008	Near Threatened	B1a+b(iii); C1; C2a(i)
2004	Near Threatened
2000	Lower Risk/Near Threatened
1994	Lower Risk/Near Threatened
1988	Threatened

Migratory status	not a migrant	Forest dependency	high
Land-mass type	shelf island	Average mass	-

	Estimate	Data quality
Extent of Occurrence (breeding/resident)	12,400 km2	medium
Severely fragmented?	no	-

	Estimate	Data quality	Derivation	Year of estimate
Population size	20000-100000 mature individuals	poor	estimated	2022
Population trend	stable	poor	suspected	-
Generation length	6.17 years	-	-	-
Number of subpopulations	1	-	-	-
Percentage of mature individuals in largest subpopulation	100%	-	-	-

Population justification: The global population size of this species has not previously been formally estimated. Brazil (2009) speculated that the population likely numbered 100-10,000 breeding pairs, although even this maximum value may have been overly pessimistic. Bridgman (2002) suggested that Yushan National Park may host 10,000 birds alone based on densities of 58 and 48 pheasants/km² in primary and secondary forest respectively. Even precautionarily assuming only 25% of suitable habitat (estimated by Bridgman [2002] to cover c.6,500 km²), the population likely numbers tens of thousands of mature individuals. The population size is therefore estimated here to number 20,000-100,000 mature individuals.

Trend justification: There are no contemporary population trend data for this species. Bridgman (2002) identified declines in encounter rate at one site of secondary forest in the 1990s, in tandem with an increase in poaching events. However, seasonal weather variation at least partially confounds these data and there is no widespread or more recent indication that this species is declining in response to poaching. The only other plausible threat, forest loss, does not appear to be an active one. Between 2000 and 2021, forest cover loss in this species' range declined by <1% (Savini et al. 2021, Global Forest Watch 2022), a value within the range of variation caused by landslides etc. Consequently, and in the absence of other threats thought capable of driving an ongoing decline in this species, its trend is suspected to be stable.

Country/Territory	Presence	Origin	Resident	Breeding visitor	Non-breeding visitor	Passage migrant
Taiwan, China	extant	native	yes

Country/Territory	IBA Name
Taiwan, China	Chuyanshan Nature Reserve
Taiwan, China	Dawushan Nature Reserve and Shuang-guei Lake Major Wildlife Habitat
Taiwan, China	Daxueshan, Xueshankeng, Wushikeng, Taichung City
Taiwan, China	Nengdan, Nantou County
Taiwan, China	North Section of Xueshan Mountain Range, Taoyuan City
Taiwan, China	Ruei-yan, Nantou County
Taiwan, China	Shei-Pa National Park
Taiwan, China	Taroko National Park
Taiwan, China	Upstream Section of Beigang River, Nantou County
Taiwan, China	Yuli Wildlife Refuge
Taiwan, China	Yushan National Park

Habitat (level 1)	Habitat (level 2)	Importance	Occurrence
Forest	Temperate	major	resident
Altitude	1800 - 3300 m	Occasional altitudinal limits

Threat (level 1)	Threat (level 2)	Impact and Stresses
Biological resource use	Hunting & trapping terrestrial animals - Intentional use (species is the target)	Timing		Scope		Severity		Impact
		Ongoing		Minority (<50%)		Negligible declines		Low Impact: 4
		Stresses Species mortality

Purpose	Scale
Food - human	subsistence, national

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Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Species factsheet: Mikado Pheasant Syrmaticus mikado. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/mikado-pheasant-syrmaticus-mikado on 23/12/2024.
Recommended citation for factsheets for more than one species: BirdLife International (2024) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from https://datazone.birdlife.org/species/search on 23/12/2024.