Usually, the little duck or the fluffy chicken is crowned the prettiest bird of the Iowa State Fair. In 2026, however, the champion is a sign of good luck and prosperity in Chinese culture.
Flash, the 2-year-old Golden Pheasant, also known as the Chinese Pheasant, bested several birds in the Iowa State Fair’s third annual prettiest bird contest on Saturday, Aug. 15.
The contestants included a Snowy Call duck, a black Sumatra chicken, a large, orange Orpington rooster who dwarfed the duck, and a black and white spotted Mottle Cochin chicken. A white, pink-dyed Silkie chicken put up a fight, but fell short by nearly 147 votes to Flash’s striking yellows, reds and blues.
“We thought the Silkie might win because it had been dyed pink,” Diana Dahir, the fair’s poultry superintendent, told the Register. “But I did hear a lot of chatter about the big, buff Orpington.”
Fairgoers chose which of the six birds they believed to be the prettiest.
From 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, 1,516 votes were cast. Flash the Golden Pheasant secured 539 votes, while the pink-dyed Silkie came in second with 392 votes. The Oprington earned 292; the Snow Call 217; the Motted Cochin 43; and the black Sumatra 33.
“I’d heard people say they were going to vote for what they think is the underdog,” Dahir explained.
Flash’s owner, Jett Thomas, 24, of Carlisle, was “kind of” surprised that his bird won, he said in a phone interview. He had to go home and feed the livestock before the winner was announced.
“It was my grandma’s idea” to enter Flash, Thomas said.
He gets to tout his bird as the prettiest in Iowa, taking home a plaque and a blue ribbon.
“I’m happy,” Thomas said.
Kyle Werner is the breaking news and public safety reporter for the Register. Reach him at kwerner@registermedia.com.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Red, gold and blue pheasant crowned Iowa State Fair’s prettiest bird
Reporting by Kyle Werner, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Kyle Werner, Des Moines Register | USA TODAY Network
