This difference in the two forms may be due to inbreeding of a restricted, fragmented population there, and has also been seen in captive, inbred L. edwardsi.

In 2012 the nominate form of Edwards's pheasant have been uplisted to Critically Endangered by BirdLife International, having suffered from deforestation, hunting and the use of defoliants during the Vietnam War.

The population is currently believed to number between 50 and 249 birds in the wild, mostly of the nominate form, but it is doing well in captivity, where it is the subject of ex situ conservation.

There have been no confirmed sightings of a living individual in the wild since 2000 and in 2010 the World Pheasant Association (WPA) received funding from the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund to survey forests in the central Vietnam provinces of Quảng Bình and Quảng Trị.

Males push their chests, vibrate their wings, and erect the feathers on their backs to find their mate.

The females make the nests well hidden and dug into the group, usually with plant debris and bamboo overtop.

Intense hunting and trapping, habitat loss due to herbicide spraying during the Vietnam War, logging, and clearance for agriculture has significantly affected the population of this species.

Khe Nuoc Trong, Bac Huong Hoa, Phong Dien,[10] and Ke Go are reserves where these birds could reside.

The Phong Điền Nature Reserve was initially designated to protect the Edward's pheasant after the rediscovery of the species in the area in 1996.