Abstract:

Habitat selection of Brown-Eared Pheasant (Crossoptilon mantchuricum) was studied at the Wulushan Nature Reserve of Shanxi Province from December of 1997 to November of 1998. The results showed that habitat selection of Brown-Eared Pheasant varied with seasons. In spring, Brown-Eared Pheasant selected mainly shrubs near the forest edge where there were higher covers at the layers of 0-10 cm and abundant food supplies. In summer, the pheasants mainly avoided the predation for their breeding successfully. Due to more iron mines exploitation, they often were away from iron mines and appeared in coniferous-deciduous forests where vegetation cover was higher and predation pressure was lower. In fall, the pheasants often appeared and rested in flocks, and lived in coniferous-deciduous forests with higher covers at the layers of 10-30 cm, and often foraged at the shrubs with the richer food such as Fructus hippophae Hippophae rhamnoides. The coniferous-deciduous forests and shrubs near the forest edge were used as their major habitats in winter, and they often occurred in the habitats with higher and larger-diameters, which could provide better shelter for the pheasants.

Key words: habitat selection, Brown-Eared Pheasant, discriminant analysis, Wulushan Nature Reserve