Pheasant vs. Chicken vs. Others

Pheasant, grouse, partridge, turkey, and peacock are among the five most delicious game birds that humans have been using for a long time to substitute chicken meat. Unlike the chicken, which has been domesticated for decades, these game birds live in the wild which means they must be hunted to be used as food.

The similarities between these birds are that they are all fowls (both land and game) and that they lay eggs, period! Otherwise, each of these birds is unique in its own way. My grandpa used to take me hunting for turkey when I visited him in Wisconsin. It was during this trip that I first began to learn about these birds and since then, I have learned a ton that I am happy to share. 

In fact, I still have souvenirs for the game bird hunts we went to. In our article today, we shall be comparing pheasant to chicken (land fowl), grouse, partridge, turkey, and peacock by looking at a number of factors including size, diet, habitat, color, and Colors. 

Pheasant vs. Chicken

Pheasant is a general term that consists of 49 species and many sub-species in the family Phasianidae while chicken is a subspecies of the red junglefowl.

The table below shows the difference between pheasants and chicken

Features	Pheasant	Chicken
Weight	2 ½ lbs.	5.7 lbs.
Size	Male: 60 to 89 cmFemale: 50 to 63 cm	70 cm on average
Colors	Barred bright gold, fiery copper-red, and chestnut-brown with an iridescent sheen of purple & green	Cuckoo, white, Columbian, golden cuckoo, black, wheaten, black-tailed buff, & birchen
Wing Coverage	Cream or white, black-barred markings on the tail	Based on colors
Habitat	Grasslands, shrublands, hay lands, idle fields, and croplands	Farms & backyards
Diet	Grains, berries, small animals, insects, and seeds	Veggies, grains, a variety of fruits, table scraps, wild seeds, earthworms, & insects
Sleeping Habits	Trees or Shrubs (warm months)Overgrown marshes (in fall)	Perching on a roost
Life Expectancy	Up to 3 years on average	5 to 10 years on average
Offspring	More than 12 eggs at a time	1 egg per day

Table 1: Pheasant vs. ChickenThe table below shows the difference between pheasants and chicken

Pheasant vs. Grouse

While pheasant is a fowl in the family Phasianidae, the grouse is a sub-family of fowls.

The table below shows the differences between pheasants and grouse

Features	Pheasant	Grouse
Weight	2 ½ lbs.	530g (smallest)to 6.5 lbs. (largest)
Size	Male: 60 to 89 cmFemale: 50 to 63 cm	28 to 51 cm
Colors	Barred bright gold, fiery copper-red, and chestnut-brown with an iridescent sheen of purple & green	Gray, brown, red, split, and intermediate
Wing Coverage	Cream or white, black-barred markings on the tail	Depends on the type of grouse – ruffed, dusky, gray, blue…
Habitat	Grasslands, shrublands, hay lands, idle fields, and croplands	Young aspen forests, bushlands, dense tree stands, oak, & lowland brush
Diet	Grains, berries, small animals, insects, and seeds	Leaves, insects, berries, woody plants, buds, seeds, shrubs, & fruits
Sleeping Habits	Trees or Shrubs (warm months)Overgrown marshes (in fall)	Low tree branches
Life Expectancy	Up to 3 years on average	Max. of 11 years (av. of 7 to 8 years)
Offspring	More than 12 eggs at a time	4 to 8 eggs every 1 ½ days

Table 2: Pheasant vs. Grouse

Partridge vs. Pheasant

Partridge refers to any fowl of a number of genera in the family Phasianidae (especially Alectoris & perdix).

The table below shows the differences between Pheasants and Partridges:

Features	Pheasant	Partridge
Weight	2 ½ lbs.	0.75 lbs.
Size	Male: 60 to 89 cmFemale: 50 to 63 cm	30 to 35 cm
Colors	Barred bright gold, fiery copper-red, and chestnut-brown with an iridescent sheen of purple & green	Brown, gray, and white
Wing Coverage	Cream or white, black-barred markings on the tail	Face: tan to orange with rusty stripes on the sides
Habitat	Grasslands, shrublands, hay lands, idle fields, and croplands	Coastal dunes, forests, rocky plains, farmlands, and grasslands
Diet	Grains, berries, small animals, insects, and seeds	Barley, sunflower, ragweed, oats, Russian thistle, foxtail, corn, and wheat
Sleeping Habits	Trees or Shrubs (warm months)Overgrown marshes (in fall)	On the ground tightly pressed to one another with their head outwards
Life Expectancy	Up to 3 years on average	Maximum of 6.5 years
Offspring	More than 12 eggs at a time	10 to 20 eggs per clutch

Table 3: Partridge vs. Pheasant

Pheasant vs. Turkey

A large bird native to North America, Turkey belongs to the family Phasianidae and has two existing species, including the ocellated turkey of the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico, and the wild turkey of eastern & central North America.

The table below shows the differences between pheasant and turkey:

Features	Pheasant	Turkey
Weight	2 ½ lbs.	11 lbs. to 24 lbs.
Size	Male: 60 to 89 cmFemale: 50 to 63 cm	Male: 100 to 120 cmFemale: 76 to 95 cm
Colors	Barred bright gold, fiery copper-red, and chestnut-brown with an iridescent sheen of purple & green	Black with a bronze-green iridescence
Wing Coverage	Cream or white, black-barred markings on the tail	Dark, boldly barred with white
Habitat	Grasslands, shrublands, hay lands, idle fields, and croplands	Forage floors, swamps, and grasslands
Diet	Grains, berries, small animals, insects, and seeds	Nuts, seeds, small insects, and seeds
Sleeping Habits	Trees or Shrubs (warm months)Overgrown marshes (in fall)	Nests on trees at night
Life Expectancy	Up to 3 years on average	3 to 4 years on average (wild)10 years (domesticated)
Offspring	More than 12 eggs at a time	4 to 17 eggs at a time

Table 4: Pheasant vs. Turkey

Pheasant vs. Peacock

Pheasants and peacocks belong to the family Phasianidae.

The table below shows the differences between pheasant and peacock. 

Features	Pheasant	Peacock
Weight	2 ½ lbs.	6.1 lbs. to 13 lbs.
Size	Male: 60 to 89 cmFemale: 50 to 63 cm	Male: 230 cmFemale: 95 cm
Colors	Barred bright gold, fiery copper-red, and chestnut-brown with an iridescent sheen of purple & green	Blue, Cameo, Jade, Green, White, Opal, Midnight, Charcoal, Taupe, Indigo, Peach, Purple, Bronze, Sonja’s Violeta, and Hazel
Wing Coverage	Cream or white, black-barred markings on the tail	Body patterns: barred wing, silver pied, white-eyed, pied, and black shoulder
Habitat	Grasslands, shrublands, hay lands, idle fields, and croplands	Bushland, farmland, forests, & warm areas with low trees
Diet	Grains, berries, small animals, insects, and seeds	Plants, insects, ants, flies, fruits, seeds, amphibians, and snakes
Sleeping Habits	Trees or Shrubs (warm months)Overgrown marshes (in fall)	High on trees or high shelters
Life Expectancy	Up to 3 years on average	25 years on average
Offspring	More than 12 eggs at a time	7 to 15 eggs at a time

Table 5: Pheasant vs. Peacock

Pheasant Male and Female

Do you know the difference between the male pheasant and the female pheasant?

Feature	Male Pheasant	Female Pheasant
Size	60 cm to 100 cm	60 cm to 100 cm
Feather Color	Green, black, blue, brown, orange, cream/buff, gray, red, white, purple/pink	White, cream or buff, and brown
Leg Color	Brown	Brown
Wingspan	70 cm to 90 cm	70 cm to 90 cm
Weight	2 lbs. to 3 lbs.	2 lbs.
Beak	Curved, brown, short, yellow, chunky, and white	Brown, chunky, white, short, yellow, white, and curved
Natural Habitats	Grassland, woodland, farmland, and urban & suburban	Grassland, woodland, urban & suburban, and farmland

Table 6: Male Pheasant vs. Female Pheasant

Wrap-Up

Although pheasants, grouse, partridge, turkey, chicken, and peacock are all fowls, this is where the similarities and the differences begin. From the size of eggs, diets, and habitat among others, these birds (tamed and wild) have features that make them unique from each other.

By the way, if you are looking for a perfect wild meat with almost similar nutritional value to land fowl, these game birds provide your body with all the protein, fat, and calories they need to build the muscles and have a great taste. So, if you are tired of having chicken for dinner each night, you should try the scrumptious meat from one of these five game birds.