A WOMAN from Dyserth was stunned to come across a golden pheasant in the village on Tuesday (March 26).

Paula Murray said she had “never seen anything like it” when she noticed the bird on Upper Foel Road.

She was about to drive down her lane when the pheasant appeared in front of her car, much to her surprise.

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“I’ve never seen anything like it, with those colours,” she said.

“We had to Google what it was ourselves!

“One of my sons and I were just about to drive down our lane where it forks in the road to Upper Foel Road, and the pheasant appeared by the lane, walked in front of the car and then up the road.

“I’d never seen a bird like it before, with all those coloured feathers. I wondered if it was a skinny cockerel at first, so my son Googled it as we took photos, and found out it was a golden pheasant.”

The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) confirmed that, on the basis of the pictures Paula shared, that bird did indeed appear to be a golden pheasant.

A spokesperson for the RSPB added that they are “not uncommon in captivity” and are “a smaller bird than their more familiar counterpart, the pheasant”.

They said: “The male's colourful appearance – a yellow crown and lower back, dark wings and upper neck, red underparts and finely striped tail – means it's also known as the ‘rainbow pheasant’.

“The female is paler brown than a female pheasant. It's a shy bird, keeping to dark, dense woodland. It roosts in trees at night.”

You can report bird sightings on the British Trust for Ornithology’s website.