Ins i u o Nacional de In es igación y Tecnología Ag a ia y Alimen a ia (INIA)
A ailable online a www.inia.es/sja
h p://dx.doi.o g/10.5424/sja /2012104-403-11
Spanish Jou nal o Ag icul u al Resea ch 2012 10(4), 1005-1015
ISSN: 1695-971-X
eISSN: 2171-9292
Typi ica ion and cha ac e isa ion o he pheasan
(Phasianus colchicus) game a ms in Spain
P. González-Redondo* and P. Ga cía-Domínguez
Depa amen o de Ciencias Ag o o es ales. Escuela Técnica Supe io de Ingenie ía Ag onómica.
Uni e sidad de Se illa. C a. de U e a km 1. 41013 Se illa, Spain
Abs ac
This esea ch ypi ied and cha ac e ised he pheasan (Phasianus colchicus) game a ms in Spain using s uc u al
and ma ke ing a iables. A s uc u ed su ey was gi en o 25 p i a e-owned a ms in May 2010. A ca ego ical p inci-
pal componen s analysis pe o med o ypi y he a ms yielded wo dimensions. Fi s dimension explained 50.5% o
he a iance and included he a iables “numbe o emales in he b eeding lock”, and “ he a m is o comple e-cycle
o no ”. Second dimension explained 32.3% o he a iance and included he a iables “age o he a m” and “ he a m
ad e ises i s ac i i y in he game p ess”. A clus e analysis di e en ia ed ou a m ypologies. Fa m ype 1 included
28% o he a ms, being ecen (es ablished be ween 1990 and 2003), comple e-cycle and medium-sized (b eeding
lock o 15 o 300 emales), wi h low ad e ising ac i i y in he game p ess and wi hou a hun ing p ese e. Fa m ype
2 included 28% o he a ms, being he mos ecen (es ablished be ween 1994 and 2008), wi hou b eeding lock, wi h
low ad e ising ac i i y, and mos ha e hun ing p ese e. Fa m ype 3 included 20% o he a ms, being old (es ablished
be ween 1983 and 1992), wi hou b eeding lock and wi h high ad e ising ac i i y; 40% o hem ha e hun ing p ese e.
Fa m ype 4 included 24% o he a ms, being old (es ablished be ween 1980 and 1995), comple e-cycle and high-sized
(b eeding lock o 50 o 1,000 emales), wi h high ad e ising ac i i y; mos ha e hun ing p ese e. In conclusion, his
is an al e na i e poul y sub-sec o consolida ed in Spain, despi e being only h ee decades old.
Addi ional key wo ds: ad e ising; al e na i e poul y; hun ing species; mul i a ia e analysis.
Resumen
Tipi icación y ca ac e ización de g anjas cinegé icas de aisán (Phasianus colchicus) en España
Se ipi ica on y ca ac e iza on g anjas cinegé icas de aisán (Phasianus colchicus) en España usando a iables de
es uc u a y come cialización ob enidas median e encues a a 25 g anjas p i adas en 2010. Un análisis de componen es
p incipales ca egó icos ealizado pa a ipi ica las g anjas gene ó dos dimensiones. La p ime a dimensión explicó el
50,5% de la a ianza e incluyó las a iables “núme o de hemb as ep oduc o as” y “la g anja es de ciclo comple o o
no”. La segunda dimensión explicó el 32,3% de la a ianza e incluyó las a iables “edad de la g anja” y “la g anja se
publici a en p ensa cinegé ica”. Un análisis de conglome ados subsiguien e di e enció cua o ipologías de g anjas. La
ipología 1 incluyó al 28% de las g anjas, siendo ecien es ( undadas en e 1990 y 2003), de ciclo comple o y amaño
medio (15 a 300 hemb as ep oduc o as), con baja ac i idad publici a ia en p ensa cinegé ica y sin co o de caza. La
ipología 2 incluyó un 28% de las g anjas, siendo las más ecien es ( undadas en e 1994 y 2008), sin ep oduc o es,
con baja ac i idad publici a ia y la mayo ía con co o. La ipología 3 incluyó un 20% de las g anjas, siendo an iguas
( undadas en e 1983 y 1992), sin plan el ep oduc o y con ele ada ac i idad publici a ia; el 40% ienen co o. La i-
pología 4 incluyó un 24% de las g anjas, siendo an iguas ( undadas en e 1980 y 1995), de ciclo comple o y g an a-
maño (50 a 1.000 hemb as ep oduc o as), con ele ada ac i idad publici a ia y la mayo ía con co o. Con sólo es
décadas de exis encia es e subsec o a ícola al e na i o es á consolidado en España.
Palab as cla e adicionales: análisis mul i a ian e; a icul u a al e na i a; especies cinegé icas; publicidad.
*Co esponding au ho : [email p o ec ed]
Recei ed: 09-08-11. Accep ed: 15-10-12
Abb e ia ions used: CATPCA (ca ego ical p incipal componen s analysis).
P. González-Redondo and P. Ga cía-Domínguez / Span J Ag ic Res (2012) 10(4), 1005-1015
1006
he analysis o i s si ua ion and e olu ion ha e been
conduc ed (Sánchez Ga cía-Abad e al., 2009). Fo
his eason, in Spain he size, echnological le els,
geog aphic a eas o ma ke ing hei p oduc s and
ma ke ing and ad e ising s a egies o he pheasan
game a ms emain o be in es iga ed. In his sense,
cha ac e ising a ms and ypi ying hem by mul i-
a ia e analysis echniques ha e been widely used in
li es ock and game a ming esea ch (Cas el e al.,
2003; Pa dos e al., 2008; Ruiz e al., 2008; González-
Redondo e al., 2010) as ools o enhancing knowl-
edge o a speci ic sub-sec o and o helping go e n-
men s and echnicians o make decisions aimed a a
be e implemen a ion and managemen o a m sup-
po p og ams (Pa dos e al., 2008). The e o e, he
aim o his esea ch is o cha ac e ise and ypi y he
Spanish game a ms ha aise pheasan s by using
a iables ela ed o s uc u e, ad e ising and ma ke -
ing. This will p o ide ele an knowledge abou small
game a ming sys ems.
Me hodology
S udy a ea and sample selec ion
The s udy was conduc ed in Spain o e Ap il and
May 2010. Se e al sou ces o inding candida e a ms
o he su ey we e used: public and p i a e da abases,
p ess ad e isemen s, web sea ches and pe sonal con-
ac s. All o he a me s ound we e con ac ed and in-
i ed o pa icipa e olun a ily in he s udy. The sample
used consis ed o 25 a ms loca ed in wel e egions
(Table 1). The s udy included only comme cial game
a ms, he e o e excluding a ms solely de o ed o sel -
supply hun ing p ese es which did no sell hei p o-
duc ion. In addi ion, ha che ies and a ms de o ed
solely o mea o eggs p oduc ion, o o p oducing
o namen al pheasan species, as well as unclassi ied
a ms, we e also excluded om his esea ch. Because
only 214 o he 463 pheasan a ms egis e ed in Spain
we e de o ed o selling animals o hun ing (MARM,
2011; Subdi ección Gene al de Sanidad e Higiene
Animal y T azabilidad o he Minis e io de Ag icul-
u a, Alimen ación y Medio Ambien e, pe s. com.), he
sample used ep esen ed abou 12% o he a ge
popula ion o game a ms unde s udy. Mo eo e , his
sample size was simila o ha o o he s udies aimed
a cha ac e ising and ypi ying o he game a m sub-
sec o s in Spain (González-Redondo e al., 2010).
In oduc ion
The ing-necked pheasan (Phasianus colchicus) is
a game bi d widely aised on a ms in many coun ies
o shoo ing, mainly in Eu ope and he USA (Ghigi,
1958; Delacou , 1959; Fol, 1961; To es e al., 1995;
Canning, 2005). In Spain i is an exo ic species (Bal-
les e os, 1998) and as such i s cap i e b eeding o
hun ing is mainly aimed a eleasing he animals o
in ensi e ‘pu and ake’ shoo ing, a he han o eco -
e y and e-es ablishmen pu poses (González-Redondo,
1997; Balles e os, 1998).
The pheasan p oduc ion model (Delacou , 1959;
Fol, 1961; Béja , 1995; Canning, 2005; Ga cía Ma ín,
2005; To es e al., 1995; K ys ianiak e al., 2007) is
pa ly simila o o he game bi ds, such as pa idges
and quails. In comple e-cycle a ms, b eeding pheasan s
wi h ages usually anging om one o ou (in some
cases, up o se en) yea s old, a e kep , equen ly ou -
doo s, in pens in ha ems o in colonies (in bo h cases,
in a sex a io o 1:5 o 1:7 male- o- emales). A b eeding
pheasan lays an a e age o 50 o 70 eggs pe ep oduc-
i e season. This pe iod usually las s om Ma ch-Ap il
o June-July. Rep oduc i e pe o mances inc ease i
a i icial pho ope iod supplemen a ion is applied o he
b eede s. The eggs a e collec ed on a daily basis and
s o ed be o e being loaded in o a i icial incuba o s,
and incuba ed un il ha ching occu s 23-24 days la e .
The newly-ha ched chicks a e ea ed o some i e o
se en weeks in b oode houses whe e li e on he loo ,
wa e and s a e mash a e p o ided and in a- ed lamps
a e used o hea ing. A e his ini ial pe iod, he g ow-
ing pheasan s a e ea ed in la ge, open-ai ea ing pens
whe e hey exe cise hei lying abili y un il hey a e
sold o elease in hun ing g ounds. In addi ion o
comple e-cycle a ms, he e a e a ms wi h no b eeding
lock ha a e solely de o ed o aising he pheasan s,
s a ing om day-old chicks.
In 2010 he e we e 463 egis e ed pheasan - aising
a ms in Spain (MARM, 2011). Hal o hese a ms
aise he ing-necked pheasan o hun ing (Sánchez
Ga cía-Abad e al., 2009; Subdi ección Gene al de
Sanidad e Higiene Animal y T azabilidad o he Mi-
nis e io de Ag icul u a, Alimen ación y Medio Ambien e,
pe s. com.), while he o he s p oduce mea , eggs, and
o he species o o namen al pheasan s. In spi e o he
wide dis ibu ion o he pheasan game a ms in Spain,
pheasan a ming is a ecen , li le known ac i i y
(To es e al., 1995). To da e, only a ew, pa ial s udies
dealing wi h he genesis o his sub-sec o , as well as
1007
Typi ica ion and cha ac e isa ion o he pheasan a ms in Spain
Da a collec ion and a iables s udied
The in o ma ion was ob ained by a di ec in e iew
su ey pe o med on he a me s. The s uc u ed ques-
ionnai e included 22 quali a i e a iables and ou
quan i a i e a iables (Table 2), belonging o he ollow-
ing g oups: i) age o he a m (yea o es ablishmen );
ii) size o he b eeding lock and ep oduc i e s uc u e and
managemen ; iii) aised species o he han ing-necked
pheasan s; i ) o e ed p oduc s o he han pheasan s o
elease in o hun ing p ese es; ) addi ional se ices
o e ed by he a m; i) ma ke ’s geog aphic a ea; and
ii) a m ad e ising p ac ices. These a iables we e
selec ed on he basis o a e iew o p e ious knowledge
on he pheasan game a ms subsec o (Mane i, 1989;
Béja , 1995; To es e al., 1995; Canning, 2005; Ga cía
Ma ín, 2005; Sánchez Ga cía-Abad e al., 2009).
S a is ical analysis
A e analysing he ela ionships among he ini ial
se o a iables, a mul i a ia e analysis was ca ied ou
o de ec he ac o s ha bes cha ac e ise and ypi y
he a ms. Ca ego ical p incipal componen s analysis
(CATPCA) was pe o med on he se o a iables in
o de o achie e dimension educ ion. Using he wo
dimensions yielded by he CATPCA, ou o he ini ial
26 a iables we e selec ed as hey we e bo h in e es ing
o classi ying and disc imina ing a m ypologies, as
well as being ep esen a i e o o he non-selec ed a i-
ables. A K-mean clus e analysis, using he squa ed
Euclidean dis ance, classi ied he a ms in o ou ypolo-
gies (clus e s). The analysis o he ela ionships among
a iables o he ou a m ypologies was ca ied ou
using one-way analysis o a iance when he a iables
showed homoscedas ici y, and K uskal-Wallis analysis
o a iance in he case o he e oscedas ici y. Tukey’s es s
and Dunne ’s C es s we e used, espec i ely, as pos hoc
p obes o compa e alues among he clus e s wi hin each
a iable. The s a is ical analyses we e pe o med using
SPSS .15.0 so wa e (SPSS Inc., 2006).
Resul s
Table 2 shows he equencies o he a iables cha -
ac e ising he pheasan game a ms. Fig. 1 shows he
equencies o a ms acco ding o he yea o hei es-
ablishmen . All o he a ms we e p i a ely owned and
ea ed pheasan s bu hey can be di e en ia ed by hei
ha ing a b eeding lock (comple e-cycle a ms) o no .
Na u e o he a iables and hei in luence
on di e en ia ion a m ypes
The CATPCA yielded wo dimensions (Table 3;
Fig. 2) whose eigen alues we e 2.021 o he i s
dimension and 1.292 o he second dimension. To al
a iance explained by he solu ion was 82.8%: 50.5%
by dimension 1 and 32.3% by dimension 2. The i s
dimension, co esponding o he abscissa, included
wo a iables: i) he numbe o emales in he b eed-
ing lock, ha dec eases wi h he abscissa, and ii) he
a m is o comple e-cycle p oduc ion, hese comple e-
cycle a ms being a lowe alues o he abscissa. The
second dimension, co esponding o he o dina e,
included wo a iables: i) he a m ad e ises i s ac i -
i y in he game p ess, he a ms unde aking his ac i -
i y being a highe alues o he o dina e, and ii) he
age o he a m, ha inc eases wi h he o dina e. The
C onbach’alpha, based on he o al eigen alue, was
0.931, hus indica ing he eliabili y o he p ocedu e.
Table 3 shows he componen s loading o he wo-
dimensional solu ion.
Table 1. Regional dis ibu ion o he Spanish census (in May
2010) and he su eyed pheasan game a ms
Region
Census1Sample
n%n%
Andalucía 88 19.0 4 16.0
A agón 2 0.4 – –
As u ias 20 4.3 1 4.0
Balea es 10 2.2 1 4.0
Cana ias 5 1.1 – –
Can ab ia 17 3.7 1 4.0
Cas illa-La Mancha 38 8.2 5 20.0
Cas illa y León 68 14.7 6 24.0
Ca aluña 43 9.3 2 8.0
Ex emadu a 124 26.8 1 4.0
Galicia 8 1.7 1 4.0
Mad id 20 4.3 1 4.0
Mu cia 1 0.2 – –
Na a a 4 0.9 – –
País Vasco 1 0.2 1 4.0
La Rioja 1 0.2 – –
Comunidad Valenciana 13 2.8 1 4.0
To al 463 100.0 25 100.0
1 Acco ding o MARM (2011).
P. González-Redondo and P. Ga cía-Domínguez / Span J Ag ic Res (2012) 10(4), 1005-1015
1008
Fa m ype di e en ia ion
Classi ica ion o he a ms by he wo dimensions
es ablished ou well-de ined a m ypes (clus e s) (Fig.
2). Table 2 shows he equencies o he a iables by
clus e s, and he s a is ical signi icances o he di e -
ences among hese a m ypes o he a iables s udied.
The ou di e en ia ed a m ypes a e desc ibed as ol-
lows:
— Type 1: “Young, comple e-cycle and medium-sized
a ms wi h low ad e ising ac i i y in he game p ess”
(n = 7 a ms; 28%). Fa ms in his g oup a e dis inguished
om he o he g oups because all o hem ha e a com-
ple e-cycle s uc u e wi h a medium-sized b eeding lock
( ange: 15 o 300 emales). These a e ecen a ms (es-
ablished be ween 1990 and 2003), and only a low pe -
cen age ad e ise hei ac i i y in he game p ess. None
o hese a ms has an owned hun ing p ese e.
Table 2. Values o he a iables (mean ± SE) o he a ms o each pheasan game a ming ype1
Va iable Type 1
(n = 7; 28%)
Type 2
(n = 7; 28%)
Type 3
(n = 5; 20%)
Type 4
(n = 6; 24%)
To al
(n = 25) p
Age o he a m
Age o he a m (yea s)112.3 ± 1.7 b 8.9 ± 2.0 b 21.8 ± 1.6 a 20.5 ± 2.3 a 15.2 ± 1.4 < 0.001
Rep oduc i e s uc u e and managemen
Comple e-cycle (%) 100.0 ± 0.0 a 0.0 ± 0.0 b 0.0 ± 0.0 b 100.0 ± 0.0 a 52.0 ± 10.2 < 0.001
B eeding emales (n) 142.9 ± 34.4 a 0.0 ± 0.0 b 0.0 ± 0.0 b 416.7 ± 159.5 a 269.2 ± 82.22< 0.001
B eeding males (n) 32.6 ± 7.4 a 0.0 ± 0.0 b 0.0 ± 0.0 b 149.2 ± 75.4 a 86.4 ± 37.32< 0.001
Female- o-male a io (n)24.7 ± 0.5 – – 3.7 ± 0.5 4.2 ± 0.420.163
B eede s a e kep in ha ems o one male
and se e al emales (%)2
42.9 ± 20.2 – – 66.7 ± 21.1 53.8 ± 14.420.433
B eede s a e kep in colonies o se e al males
and se e al emales (%)2
57.1 ± 20.2 – – 33.3 ± 21.1 46.2 ± 14.420.433
A i icial pho ope iod supplemen a ion (%)228.6 ± 18.4 – – 33.3 ± 21.1 30.8 ± 13.320.867
Species p oduced
Raises game species o he han pheasan s (%) 71.4 ± 18.4 71.4 ± 18.4 100.0 ± 0.0 66.7 ± 21.1 76.0 ± 8.7 0.584
Raises ed-legged pa idges (Alec o is u a) (%) 71.4 ± 18.4 71.4 ± 18.4 80.0 ± 20.0 66.7 ± 21.1 72.0 ± 9.2 0.976
Raises quails (Co u nix co u nix) (%) 28.6 ± 18.4 57.1 ± 20.2 100.0 ± 0.0 33.3 ± 21.1 52.0 ± 10.2 0.079
Raises o he game species (%) 28.6 ± 18.4 14.3 ± 14.3 60.0 ± 24.5 33.3 ± 21.1 32.0 ± 9.5 0.457
Raises pheasan s o species o he han
ing-necked pheasan (%)
14.3 ± 14.3 28.6 ± 18.4 0.0 ± 0.0 33.3 ± 21.1 20.0 ± 8.2 0.515
P oduc s o he han pheasan s o elease
Sells ha ching eggs (%)214.3 ± 14.3 – – 16.7 ± 16.7 15.4 ± 10.4 0.915
Sells day-old chicks (%)228.6 ± 18.4 – – 16.7 ± 16.7 23.1 ± 12.2 0.646
Sells b eeding pheasan s o o he a ms (%) 28.6 ± 18.4 0.0 ± 0.0 0.0 ± 0.0 0.0 ± 0.0 8.0 ± 5.5 0.147
Sells pheasan s o mea (%) 0.0 ± 0.0 14.3 ± 14.3 0.0 ± 0.0 16.7 ± 16.7 8.0 ± 5.5 0.583
Addi ional se ices o e ed
O e s anspo se ice o he pheasan s (%) 85.7 ± 14.3 71.4 ± 18.4 100.0 ± 0.0 100.0 ± 0.0 88.0 ± 6.6 0.359
Ad ises clien s on how o elease (%) 28.6 ± 18.4 28.6 ± 18.4 80.0 ± 20.0 50.0 ± 22.4 44.0 ± 10.1 0.282
Has an owned hun ing p ese e (%) 0.0 ± 0.0 b 85.7 ± 14.3 a 40.0 ± 24.5 a,b 83.3 ± 16.7 a 52.0 ± 10.2 0.005
Ma ke ’s geog aphic a ea
Full coun y ma ke ’s a ea (%) 85.7 ± 14.3 42.9 ± 20.2 40.0 ± 24.5 83.3 ± 16.7 64.0 ± 9.8 0.186
Expo s pheasan s (%) 0.0 ± 0.0 0.0 ± 0.0 20.0 ± 20.0 33.3 ± 21.1 12.0 ± 6.6 0.203
Ad e ising p ac ices
Ad e ises i s ac i i y in he game p ess (%) 28.6 ± 18.4 b 28.6 ± 18.4 b 80.0 ± 20.0 a,b 100.0 ± 0.0 a 56.0 ± 10.1 0.021
P omo es i sel a ai s (%) 0.0 ± 0.0 57.1 ± 20.2 60.0 ± 24.5 66.7 ± 21.1 44.0 ± 10.1 0.059
Ad e ises i s ac i i y on he in e ne (%) 71.4 ± 18.4 42.9 ± 20.2 40.0 ± 24.5 66.7 ± 21.1 56.0 ± 10.1 0.624
Has a p op ie a y websi e (%) 42.9 ± 20.2 100.0 ± 0.0 60.0 ± 24.5 50.0 ± 22.4 64.0 ± 9.8 0.132
1 Means in he same ow wi h di e en le e s a e signi ican ly di e en a p < 0.05. 2 Calcula ed aking in o accoun only he comple e-
cycle a ms (n = 13).
1009
Typi ica ion and cha ac e isa ion o he pheasan a ms in Spain
— Type 2: “Young, wi hou b eeding lock a ms
wi h low ad e ising ac i i y in he game p ess” (n = 7
a ms; 28%). Fa ms in he second g oup di e o m
he o he a m ypes because hey a e he mos ecen
(es ablished be ween 1994 and 2008), ha e no b eeding
lock, and only a low pe cen age ad e ise hei ac i -
i y in he game p ess. Mos ha e an owned hun ing
p ese e in o which hey elease pa o he pheasan s
p oduced.
— Type 3: “Old, wi hou b eeding lock a ms wi h
high ad e ising ac i i y in he game p ess” (n = 5
a ms; 20%). Fa ms in his g oup a e old (es ablished
be ween 1983 and 1992), ha e no b eeding lock, and
mos ad e ise hei ac i i y in he game p ess. Fo y
pe cen o hese a ms ha e an owned hun ing p e-
se e.
— Type 4: “Old, comple e-cycle and high-sized
a ms wi h high ad e ising ac i i y in he game p ess”
(n = 6 a ms; 24%). Fa ms in his g oup a e old (es ab-
lished be ween 1980 and 1995), all o hem ha e a
comple e-cycle s uc u e wi h a high-sized b eeding
lock ( ange: 50 o 1,000 emales), and all o hem
ad e ise hei ac i i y in he game p ess. Mos o hese
a ms ha e an owned hun ing p ese e.
The ou a m ypes p esen he same dis ibu ion o
a ms as a unc ion o : i) game species aised o he han
pheasan s (and, speci ically, ed-legged pa idges,
quails, and o he s); ii) p oduc ion o o he species and
a ie ies o pheasan s di e en o he ing-necked
Figu e 1. F equencies o he pheasan game a ms acco ding o he yea o es ablishmen .
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
1980
1982
1984
1986
1988
1990
1992
1994
1996
1998
2000
2002
2004
2006
2008
Numbe o a ms
Yea o es ablishmen
Figu e 2. Spa ial localisa ion o he pheasan a ms acco ding o
he wo dimensions ob ained om he mul i a ia e analysis. Some
poin s include se e al o e lapped a ms. Fi s dimension (eigen-
alue = 2.021; C onbach’s Alpha = 0.674): lowe alues mean
comple e cycle a ms and a highe numbe o emales in he b eed-
ing lock. Second dimension (eigen alue = 1.292; C onbach’s
Alpha = 0.301): highe alues mean ha he a m ad e ised i s
ac i i y in he game p ess and ha he a m is olde .
Dimension 1
Dimension 2
–1.50
2.00
1.00
0.00
–1.00
–2.00
–1.00 –0.50 0.00 0.50 1.00 1.50
Fa m ype
*
*
*
4
*
**
1 2 3

P. González-Redondo and P. Ga cía-Domínguez / Span J Ag ic Res (2012) 10(4), 1005-1015
1010
pheasan ; iii) o e ing p oduc s o he han pheasan s
o elease in o hun ing g ounds (b eeding pheasan s
o o he a ms, and pheasan s o mea ); i ) addi-
ional se ices o e ed by he a m ( anspo a ion o
pheasan s, and ad ise o cus ome s on how o elease);
) ma ke ’s geog aphic a ea; i) and ad e ising p ac-
ices o he han ad e ising in he game p ess (Table 2).
In addi ion, all o he a ms sell he ypical p oduc
om his kind o game a ms: pheasan s o elease
in o hun ing g ounds (Table 2). The wo comple e-
cycle a m ypes ( ypes 1 and 4) showed he same
dis ibu ion o a ms as a unc ion o : i) size o he b eed-
ing lock and emale- o-male a io; ii) how he b eeding
lock is kep (in ha ems o one male and se e al
emales o in colonies o se e al males and many e-
males); iii) a i icial pho ope iod supplemen a ion o
he b eeding lock; and i ) o e ing p oduc s o he han
pheasan s o elease (ha ching eggs, and day-old
chicks) (Table 2).
Discussion
Sui abili y o he pheasan game a ms
modelling
P e ious s udies ha e only pa ially add essed
he cha ac e isa ion o he pheasan game a ms, bo h
in Spain and o he coun ies, using only desc ip i e
me hodologies o in o ma i e app oaches (Canning,
2005; Sánchez Ga cía-Abad e al., 2009). The p esen
esea ch p o ides he i s sys ema ic ypi ica ion
and cha ac e isa ion o his sub-sec o in Spain
on he basis o s uc u e and ma ke ing- ela ed a ia-
bles. The classi ica ion o s uc u es me hodology
(Bo bouze, 1995), widely and success ully used o he
ypi ica ion o o he li es ock and game a m sub-
sec o s (Cas el e al., 2003; Pa dos e al., 2008; Ruiz
e al., 2008; González-Redondo e al., 2010), has been
applied in his esea ch because i enables he a ms o
be classi ied on he basis o hei si ua ion, s uc u e,
and ope a ion (Bo bouze, 1995).
The model i ed o ypi y he pheasan game a ms
acco ding o hei s uc u e and ma ke ing was sa is-
ac o y because o al C onbach’s Alpha explained by
CATPCA solu ion was highe han in simila s udies
using CATPCA (Ochoa, 2008; Quin e o e al., 2010).
The i s dimension was associa ed wi h a m size and
ep oduc i e s uc u e; he second dimension de-
pended on he a m’s age and i s ma ke ing s a egies
(Table 3). Mo eo e , he in e p e a ion o he clus e
solu ion on a m ypologies was clea , as he ou
clus e s we e well-de ined and mu ually exclusi e
(Fig. 2).
Regional dis ibu ion o he a ms
Cen al and sou he n Spain, namely he Au ono-
mous Communi ies o Ex emadu a, Andalucía, Cas-
illa y León, Cas illa-La Mancha, and Mad id, con-
cen a es nea ly h ee-qua e s o he pheasan a ms
egis e ed (MARM, 2011) and su eyed (Table 1).
This does no i he main a ea o dis ibu ion o his
species in he wild, which is in he no he n and no h-
eas e n pa s o he Ibe ian Peninsula (To es e al.,
1995; Balles e os, 1998). This suppo s he ac ha
he species has success ully se led in he a eas whe e
habi a and clima e i i s bioecological equi emen s
(Balles e os, 1998), a ac o ha seems o be mo e
impo an han he numbe o animals eleased. The
s eng h and le el o de elopmen o he al e na i e
poul y indus y has also a ou ed he high p e alence
o pheasan a ms in o he Au onomous Communi ies
like Ca aluña (Ma sal, 2001). The esul s o he
p esen esea ch closely i he egional dis ibu ion
o he Spanish ed-legged pa idge and wild abbi
a ms, sub-sec o s p e iously desc ibed (González-
Redondo e al., 2010; González-Redondo & Sánchez-
Ma ínez, 2011).
Table 3. Componen loading o he a iables acco ding o he wo dimensions ob ained
om he mul i a ia e analysis
Dimension 1 Dimension 2
Numbe o emales in he b eeding lock –0.987 –0.129
Comple e-cycle a m 0.983 0.131
The a m ad e ises i s ac i i y in he game p ess 0.276 –0.760
Yea o es ablishmen o he a m –0.055 0.825
1011
Typi ica ion and cha ac e isa ion o he pheasan a ms in Spain
Age o he sub-sec o
By 1963 he ing-necked pheasan was al eady being
aised in cap i i y in a ea ing cen e (Dod o, La Co uña
p o ince, No h Spain) belonging o he Fo es Admin-
is a ion (Sánchez Ga cía-Abad e al., 2009), and i is
possible ha du ing he se en ies some pheasan a ms
s a ed i s ac i i y. Howe e , he p i a e sub-sec o o
game a ms aising and comme cialising his species is
younge . I is only h ee decades old, wi h an a e age
age o 15 yea s (Table 2). I is u he mo e mo e ecen
han he ed-legged pa idge game a ms sub-sec o in
Spain, which is ou decades old (González-Redondo,
2004; González-Redondo e al., 2010). Comme cial
pheasan game a ms, howe e , we e es ablished a li le
ea lie han hose o he wild abbi (O yc olagus cu-
niculus), ha ha e an a e age age o 13 yea s and mos
o hem ha e been es ablished since 1988 (González-
Redondo & Sánchez-Ma ínez, 2011). Despi e ou small
sample size, he es ablishmen o pheasan game a ms
peaked du ing he i s hal o he Nine ies (Fig. 1),
p obably as a esul o nume ous o ganiza ions, com-
panies and echnicians ca ying ou la ge-scale ex en-
sion o game a ming in gene al du ing his pe iod
(Pagés & Ga cía, 1991; González-Redondo, 2004).
Since he second hal o he nine ies o he p esen day
he pace o de elopmen o new pheasan game a ms
has emained cons an (Fig. 1). In ac , be ween 2007
and 2010 he numbe o egis e ed a ms aising pheas-
an s ( o all pu poses: mea , hun ing, eggs, o namen al,
e c.) inc eased by 70% (MARM, 2011), pa ly as a esul
o he imp o emen in he o icial sys em o a ms eg-
is a ion. This sugges ha , oday, in con as o o he
al e na i e li es ock sys ems (González-Redondo,
2003), he pheasan game a ms sub-sec o seems o be
well es ablished in Spain. The yea o es ablishmen
(Fig. 1; Table 2) was a a iable disc imina ing a m
ypes. Thus, he main di e ences esul ed in a lowe
pe cen age o younge a ms (Types 1 and 2) ad e is-
ing i s ac i i y in he game p ess, and he younge
comple e-cycle a ms (Type 1) ha ing a sligh ly li le
b eeding lock and no ha ing an owned hun ing p e-
se e no p omo ing i sel a ai s (Table 2).
Fa m size and ep oduc i e s uc u e
and managemen
The numbe o emales and he numbe o males o
he b eeding lock disc imina ed among a m ypes
(Table 2). Comple e-cycle a ms can be di e en ia ed
in o wo g oups. Fa m ype 1 included mainly newe
a ms ha ing a middle-sized b eeding lock wi h less han
300 b eeding emales, sugges ing ha mos o hese a ms
we e ope a ed as a amily business o as a subsidia y
ac i i y. Fa m ype 4 co esponds o old and he bigges
a ms (up o 1,000 b eeding emales), many o hem
p obably es ablished as a business en i y. The di ision o
a ms acco ding o hem being o he comple e-cycle ype
o no was also a a iable enabling clea ly independen
disc imina ion among a m ypes (Table 2). This s udy
iden i ies wo g oups ( a m ypes 2 and 3) o a ms wi h-
ou a b eeding lock o incuba o s, de o ed solely o
ea ing pheasan s s a ing om day-old chicks. The spe-
cialisa ion o he pheasan game a ms sub-sec o in o
phases wi h a s uc u e simila o ha o he poul y in-
dus y (pa en s ock a ms, ha che ies, chicks g owing
a ms) can also be ound in he ed-legged pa idge a ms
in Spain (González-Redondo e al., 2010). Howe e , in
he pheasan game a ms sub-sec o he p opo ion o
a ms wi hou a b eeding lock, 48%, is much highe han
in he ed-legged game a ms sub-sec o (16%; González-
Redondo e al., 2010). The p ac ice o pu chasing day-old
chicks o s a a pheasan aising en u e is also wide-
sp ead in he UK. Fo he beginne a me s, which in his
s udy co esponds in pa o a m ype 2 (Table 2), his
is a good app oach because hey will buy chicks a one
day-old and ea on, sa ing he capi al ou lay and expense
o b eeding bi ds, cages, incuba o s and ela ed equip-
men and handling (Canning, 2005). Mo eo e , because
anspo egula ions a e ollowed, he anspo ime limi
o 24 hou s o day-old chicks, p o iding i is comple ed
wi hin 72 hou s a e ha ching, acili a es hei dis ibu-
ion (Canning, 2005; Council o he EU, 2005). Ano he
eason explaining he low pe cen age o comple e-cycle
a ms is ha b eeding pheasan s a e epu edly di icul
o aise in ensi ely and a e p one o wel a e p oblems,
such as pecking (Canning, 2005).
The emale- o-male a io in he b eeding lock did
no di e be ween he wo comple e-cycle a m ypes
( a m ypes 1 and 4; Table 2). I s a e age alue, 4.2,
was less han he alue p e iously desc ibed o he
Spanish (1:5 o 1:7; Béja , 1995; To es e al., 1995;
Ga cía Ma ín, 2005) and he B i ish (1:7 o 1:10; Can-
ning, 2005) pheasan a ms.
Two sys ems o keeping he b eeding lock ha e
been ound (Table 2) ega dless o he wo comple e-
cycle a m ypes. Almos 54% o he a ms kep he
b eede s in pens, usually ou doo s, in ha ems o one
male and se e al emales a he abo emen ioned e-
P. González-Redondo and P. Ga cía-Domínguez / Span J Ag ic Res (2012) 10(4), 1005-1015
1012
male- o-male a io (Béja , 1995; To es e al., 1995).
This is he mos ecommendable sys em o game a ms
(To es e al., 1995). The o he 46% o he comple e-
cycle a ms s ocked he b eeding lock in colonies o
se e al males and many emales a a simila emale-
o-male a io (Delacou , 1959; Ga cía Ma ín, 2005).
An a i icial ligh ing p og amme o s imula ing ea -
lie and inc eased egg p oduc ion in he b eeding lock
(Béja , 1995; To es e al., 1995), o o b eaking he e-
p oduc i e seasonali y (Béja , 1995), was implemen ed
by only 30% o he comple e cycle- a ms ( a m ypes 1
and 4; Table 2). This illus a es he pheasan a ms’ lowe
echnological le el when compa ed o he ed-legged
pa idge a ms sub-sec o , whe e almos 60% o he a ms
use his echnique (González-Redondo e al., 2010).
Pheasan game a ms aising o he species
Game species o he han pheasan s we e b ed, ea ed
and sold by h ee qua e s o he su eyed a ms ega d-
less o ypology (Table 2). Red-legged pa idges
(Alec o is u a) and quails (Co u nix co u nix) we e
he mos widesp ead species, because hei b eeding
and ea ing echnologies a e pa ly simila o ha o
he pheasan , pa icula ly hose o ha che y manage-
men , b ooding and pen- ea ing (Dalmau, 1994;
González-Redondo, 2004). In con as , only a qua e
o he ed-legged game a ms aise pheasan s
(González-Redondo e al., 2010). This sugges s ha
he pheasan b eeding and ea ing is o en a subsidia y
ac i i y o many ed-legged pa idge game a ms
a he han hei main ac i i y (González-Redondo,
2005). B eeding and ea ing o game species o he han
ed-legged pa idges and quails, namely wild abbi s,
pigeons (Columba spp.), and ha es (Lepus spp.), was
ca ied ou by 32% o he pheasan a ms (Table 2).
Also ega dless o ypology, 20% o he su eyed a ms
aised pheasan s o species and a ie ies o he han he
ing-necked pheasan (Table 2). These o he pheasan s
we e mu a ed a ie ies and o namen al pheasan s,
mainly he melanis ic mu an (P. colchicus a . eneb o-
sus) and Japanese (P. colchicus a . e sicolo ) pheas-
an s ha a e sold o p i a e collec ions.
Supply o he pheasan game a ms
All he su eyed a ms aised and sold pheasan s o
elease o es ocking, due o he ac ha his is he main
and he mos demanded p oduc o he pheasan game
a ms (To es e al., 1995). In Spain, pheasan s a e
widely used in hun ing p ese es and shoo s mainly o
in ensi e ‘pu and ake’ shoo ing, a he han o es ock-
ing hun ing g ounds (Balles e os, 1998), because hey
can be eleased wi h compa a i e ease (Canning, 2005)
bu a e poo ly adap ed o mos Ibe ian habi a s (Pei ó,
1997). Due o he lack o a p ope , homogeneous na ion-
wide eco ds sys em, es ima es o he numbe s o pheas-
an s ea ed and eleased in Spain a y conside ably
(Sánchez Ga cía-Abad e al., 2009; MARM, 2010). In
spi e o he abo e, i is es ima ed ha well o e 114,770
pheasan s a e ea ed and eleased in Spain annually
(MARM, 2010). This igu e is well below he mo e han
3,000,000 ed-legged pa idges ea ed and eleased in
Spain annually (Sánchez Ga cía-Abad e al., 2009) and
he 20,000,000 pheasan s ea ed and eleased annually
in he UK, a coun y we e his species can be ega ded
as he main game bi d (Canning, 2005).
In addi ion o pheasan s o elease o es ocking as
he main p oduc , many a ms ha e di e si ied hei
o e . Ha ching eggs and one-day old chicks a e sold by
a signi ican p opo ion o a ms (Table 2), simila o he
20% ha can be ound in he ed-legged game a ms
sub-sec o in Spain (González-Redondo e al., 2010).
The ha ching eggs ma ke is suppo ed by he ac ha
pheasan eggs can be s o ed, i necessa y, up o ou
weeks be o e hei incuba ion (Wooda d & Mo zen i,
1975). B eeding pheasan s o o he a ms we e also
supplied by se e al comple e-cycle a ms, due o he ac
ha in ecen yea s nume ous pheasan a ms ha e been
es ablished, demanding la ge ba ches o b eede s ha
usually a e sold sexed, and ha a e bo n in he ep oduc-
i e season p e ious o hem being pu in o b eeding.
Howe e , his p oduc is supplied only by hal o a ms
ha in he case o he ed-legged pa idge sub-sec o
(González-Redondo e al., 2010), because in his la e
case he e a e many mo e comple e-cycle a ms equi -
ing b eede s o eplacemen o he b eeding lock.
A leas 20% (Sánchez Ga cía-Abad e al., 2009) o
he 463 egis e ed Spanish a ms aising pheasan s
(MARM, 2011) a e mea -o ien ed. F om his esea ch
a ose ha 8% o he su eyed game a ms supplied
a med ing-necked pheasan s ea ed o mea (Table
2). This is due o he ac ha bi ds ea ed speci ically
o mea a e mo e a ac i e o some consume s and
es au an s as he e is no isk o inding any lead gun-
sho in he bi d (Canning, 2005), when compa ed o
hun ed pheasan s. Ano he p opo ion o hese pheas-
an s could be hose ha emain unsold a e he elease
1013
Typi ica ion and cha ac e isa ion o he pheasan a ms in Spain
season. This pa icula p oduc is demanded in se e al
Spanish egions wi h a well de eloped ma ke o game
mea s (González-Redondo, 2010).
Addi ional se ices o e ed by he a ms
Due o he wild na u e and s ess-p one beha iou
o he pheasan , game managemen , and in pa icula
anspo ing and eleasing his species a e no easy o
ca y ou (Lei , 1994; Canning, 2005). Fo his eason,
mos a ms o e cus ome s a anspo se ice o he
animals om he a m o he hun ing p ese es, and
almos hal o hem ad ise clien s on how o success-
ully pe o m elease, es ocking and habi a manage-
men in he hun ing p ese es (Table 2). In a compe i i e
en i onmen , hese se ices a ac new, inexpe ienced
landowne s and gamekeepe s. The anspo se ice was
o e ed in he same p opo ion as ha o Spanish ed-
legged pa idge (González-Redondo e al., 2010) and
wild abbi (González-Redondo & Sánchez-Ma ínez,
2011) game a ms. Howe e , he e we e g ea di e -
ences be ween hese game a ms sub-sec o s in ela ion
o he p opo ion o a ms ha ad ise he clien s on
how o elease o es ock. Thus, he p opo ion o
pheasan a ms o e ing his se ice (Table 2) was in-
e media e be ween 84% o he ed-legged pa idge
a ms (González-Redondo e al., 2010) and 14% o he
wild abbi a ms (González-Redondo & Sánchez-
Ma ínez, 2011). This can be explained because ed-
legged pa idges a e widely used in hun ing p ese es
and shoo s as hey adap well o a landscape shaped by
mode n ag icul u e and hey can be es ocked wi h
compa a i e ease (Canning, 2005), while pheasan s a e
mainly eleased o in ensi e shoo ing a he han o
es ock hun ing g ounds (Balles e os, 1998), he la e
being a mo e echnically complex ac i i y.
Mo e han hal o he a ms had an owned hun ing
p ese e in which hey eleased pa o he pheasan s
o o ganised shoo s (Table 2). This op ion has se e al
bene i s: i sa is ies he demand o in ensi e shoo ing
by some hun e s; i places a signi ican pa o he
pheasan s ea ed by he a m in he ma ke , and i in-
c eases he added alue o hese pheasan s when com-
pa ed o hose sold di ec ly o cus ome s. The p opo -
ion o pheasan a ms associa ed wi h a hun ing
p ese e was much highe han he 36.5% o he ed-
legged pa idge (González-Redondo e al., 2010) and
han he 9.5% o he wild abbi (González-Redondo
and Sánchez-Ma ínez, 2011) Spanish game a ms. In
addi ion, his a iable con ibu ed o disc imina ing
a m ypologies. Indeed, none o he a ms belonging
o ype 1 had a hun ing p ese e, while mos o hese
belonging o ypes 2 and 4 did i (Table 2).
Ma ke ’s geog aphic a ea
Acco ding o EU egula ions (OJ, 2005), anspo
equi emen s a e no a nega i e ac o o pheasan sell-
ing because he maximum pe mi ed jou ney ime o
his species makes pa o he Ibe ian Peninsula ou o
ange o only a ew Spanish game a ms. The e o e,
wo- hi ds o he a ms, ega dless o hei ypology, sell
hei p oduc s h oughou all o he Spanish e i o y
(Table 2), while in Spanish ed-legged (González-Re-
dondo e al., 2010) and wild abbi (González-Redondo
& Sánchez-Ma ínez, 2011) game a ms his p opo ion
eaches h ee-qua e s o he o al numbe o a ms.
Only 12% o he pheasan a ms ha e expo ed pa -
idges, ega dless o ypology (Table 2), a p opo ion
signi ican ly lowe han in Spanish ed-legged pa idge
(González-Redondo e al., 2010) and wild abbi
(González-Redondo & Sánchez-Ma ínez, 2011) game
a ms. This ac i i y was ca ied ou spo adically, and he
main des ina ions o Spanish pheasan s we e he neigh-
bou ing coun ies o Po ugal, F ance, and, o a lesse
ex en , I aly and he UK. This ma ke niche, howe e ,
is cons ained by he ac ha in many Eu opean coun-
ies (e.g., F ance, I aly) he e is a well-de eloped pheas-
an game a m sec o (Ghigi, 1958; Fol, 1961; To es
e al., 1995; Canning, 2005) and because he B i ish ma -
ke is domina ed by a high le el o impo s om F ance
due o i s compe i i e p ice (Canning, 2005). In addi ion,
expo s a e also cons ained by ed apes o e animal
heal h and by he conce n o main aining he local gene
pool (Canning, 2005). Mo eo e , he maximum pe mi ed
jou ney ime o bi ds ende s much o he po en ial o -
eign ma ke ou o ange o many Spanish game a ms,
and, i anspo egula ions a e ollowed (Council o he
EU, 2005), his limi s ade.
Ad e ising and p omo ion ac i i ies
A signi ican pa o a pheasan game a m’ ou pu
is sold in he local ma ke and h ough di ec ela ion-
ships wi hin he hun ing sec o . Ano he pa is allo-
ca ed o sel -supply an associa ed hun ing p ese e.
Howe e , inc eased compe i ion in his pa icula ma ke