Peacock: 10 Amazing Facts of a Unique Bird

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Updated on: Educator Review By: Michelle Connolly

Peacock is a kind of bird that follows the family of pheasants of the order of chickens. Peacocks are known to be one of the most beautiful birds. The male spreads its feathers backwards as a beautiful fan, about five times the length of the peacock’s body. The bird is one of the flashiest birds due to its many feathers and beauty. The most colourful type of peacock is the Indian type.

There are two types of peacocks around the world; a wild type that is not tamed or domesticated, and this varies according to its homeland. Some can be easily tamed, some are difficult to tame, and others tend to be isolated, as we will mention later. Some of its species were at risk of extinction because people enjoyed eating its meat and decorating with its attractive feathers.

The differences between male and female

There is a number of differences between male and female, and the first of these differences is the feathers, as the male is characterised by long, colourful feathers decorated with distinctive colours such as blue mixed with green. While the females have a dull colour, they lack long feathers at the tail, which gives them the ability to flee from enemies quickly because they are usually lighter than the male.

The male is the size of a turkey. It has a metallic blue-green neck and chest, and the colour of the lower parts is bluish-purple. It has a long row of striped green feathers with clear eye-shaped spots. These feathers grow from the back, not from the tail.

During the fertilisation period, the male spreads the rows of his feathers in the form of a great fan during his slow show in front of the female. The size of the female is smaller, and its colours are less flashy than the colours of the male. The female does not have this row of feathers.

Peacock Characteristics

The colours of the bird are called the Peafowl, which is a name given to both sexes. The male is called a peacock, while the female is called Peahens. The bird is one of the most beautiful and luxurious birds. This is due to the variety of colours of its feathers.

In general, the colours of the female’s feathers are less cheerful than the colours of the male’s feathers, as the males have coloured feathers in blue and green, while the females are distinguished by grey or brown feathers.

Size

Females weigh about 2.75– 4 kg, while male peacocks outweigh females in weight, reaching 4–6 kg, while the length of the male peacock is about 1.8–2.3 m, while females are 0.9– 1 m in length, and the wings are 1.5 in width. M.

Feathers

Males have more than 200 feathers, unlike females, whose females have fewer feathers and are estimated at a hundred or more. Males vary in colour between blue, green, yellow, golden, and brown, while females have dull colours, in some rare cases white.

Head

Male and female peacocks have a blue crest at the top of the head, without a specific reason for its existence.

Tail

The tail has long and colourful tails. The male peacock’s tail can be about two meters long, while the female peacock has a short tail with dull grey-brown feathers. The tail is formed with a length that is more than 60% of the peacock’s size, and the bird can spread its tail in the form of a fan and drag it behind; this is called a train.

Peacock Types

Peacocks are among the birds of beautiful bright colours, known for their tails with beautiful feathers, especially those of male peacocks, in addition to the brightly coloured head of bird. Peacocks differ from the beautiful blue peacock in colour and shape, but other types of peacocks may not have the same fame.

1.                  Indian peacock

The Indian peacock, or the blue peacock as it is known, is the most distinctive type among the types of peacock birds and the original home of Indian peacocks in India, Sri Lanka and some parts of East Asia. The male Indian is the owner of the long tail with beautiful dazzling colours that he uses during courtship and mating rituals The male Indian is also distinguished by the coloured blue head and the crown above his head. The female Indian is usually brown-coloured with a green or blue head and a short tail.

2.               Green peacock

 The green peacock, which is also called the Javanese, is native to the Indonesian island of Java in Southeast Asia, and the green is similar to the Indian in the presence of a long tail with bright colours, but it tends towards green, and this type of peacock uses its feathers during courtship rituals.

The heads of green peacocks are bright green instead of dark blue in Indian peacocks. This distinguishes them from Indian peacocks, the female green is green-coloured in contrast to the brown Indian females. The difference in shape between male and female green is the tail that is distinguished. The male is taller than the female, and the green colour in the male green peacock is brighter and more lustrous than the female.

3.                  White Peacock

The white peacock is the product of some mutations and the selection and mating of some strains of Indian and green peacocks, which resulted in the emergence of the third type, which is the white. It is also famous for its long tail, but its colours are all white.

4.                  Congo peacock

This type was recently discovered and is native to Africa, specifically in Congo. The Congo peacock is distinguished by its beautiful bright colours, like the Indian and the green. Still, it has a relatively more minor tail compared to the Indian and the green.

Domesticated Species

Black wings: this change all the characteristics of physics and the colour of blue, except that the wing feathers are black with a mixed green umbrella. Peacocks also train a more bronze appearance. Records indicate that this change began in 1823 in Europe. The black is indeed born, and the black bears his shoulder when the black offspring reproduce with the black.

Spotted with black: It is scattered in colours and mixes white, black, blue and green so that 25% white, 50% black, and 25% blue.

Black agate: The head and neck are (greenish blue), the wings are grey, and the tail is grey mixed with copper colour when the lights glow on it.

Purple: It bears a black colour, and when the sun shines on it, purple appears.

Spotted with blue: It is like black, but the blue colour is abundant, so it is 25% white, 50% blue, and 25% the other colours.

Bronze: Also called Buford, it has a bronze colour that glows blue.

Green Burmese: A male differs significantly from the rest of the species. Both sides of the skin are not smart blue yellowish. The colour is generally much duller and bluer. The neck and chest of the bird have a greyish-blue or green border. Their behind is more golden and less bluish. The abdomen and, namely, the flanks are duller and bluish. The Burmese in Burma are green-green and adequately bred.

Brown pattern: It is a beautiful colour of brown, where the neck is dark brown, the wings are streaked with brown on white, and the tail is light brown.

Spotted with a brown pattern: It is between brown and white, so it is 25%, 50% white and 25% brown.

The white-eyed brown: It is similar to the brown spotted one, but it differs in that its tail is light brown, like the brown pattern, and the eyes have white spots.

Spalding: It is one of the most beautiful colours; the neck is light green, the wings are dark, and the tail is green with blue and yellow tints.

India Blue: This is a true wild species with a summit shape and metallic blue head. The beak is grey-horned, the forearms and shoulders prevent amateur Bali and the tawny black. The legs are tawny grey. Tail feathers used to support training are about 18 to 20 for males and 15 for females and 18, 16 and 18 inches in length.

The railroad may look primarily green in colour depending on the light and is 56 to 64 inches long. The stalk consists of a narrow patch surrounded by ninety smart webs of small bronze, blue and red, and the second narrow gold, green and bronze niggas, India Blue’s true offspring, breed when an India Blue is born.

Spotted India Blue: It is spotted with white all over its body, 75% white.

Indochina: The neck is green, shimmering with copper colour, not red, and the wings tend to be blue.

Spalding smells: it is between green and brown in the middle of the wings.

Black Pattern: The neck is black, the wing is light brown, and the tail is black and brown patterns on white.

Spotted with silver: It is the colour of white on the inscriptions of a silver balloon.

White: It is entirely white and looks beautiful.

Midnight: a black glowing blue.

Charcoal: It is black on the neck, the tail is glowing blue, and the wings are white with black stripes.

Behavioural Traits

Social creature

The bird is a social being by nature. It is often found in groups that live and play together and migrate together in groups of 10 peacocks. They also communicate with each other using loud sounds during the morning and late at night. They also send alarm messages by issuing low-frequency sounds inaudible to humans.

Aggressive creature

Peacocks defend their land fiercely and aggressively, spreading their tail to become like a fan and shaking it to scare the enemies, and sending warning messages to the rest of the individuals using low-frequency sound that is not audible to humans.

Male mates with more than one female

A male peacock is not satisfied with one female for mating. It mates with up to six different peacocks. Marriage takes place upon the approval of the female, as the male jumps on her back and aligns with their sexual organs, known as the cloaca, and they engage in sexual intercourse. After mating, the female builds her nest on the ground from superficial weeds.

The female lays up to six eggs in the wild, and the mother incubates the eggs for 28 to 30 days. Then, she moves her children away from the original nest as the eggshells may attract predators, and it is worth noting that after mating, the male separates from the female and does not participate with her in raising the young, which is a task that is left entirely up to her.

Reproduction

The breeding season begins in the spring, in which peacocks establish small areas close to each other known as a lek, the aim of which is to increase the opportunity for males to reach the most significant number of females. Once the peacocks meet, they begin to make several distinct sounds as an appeal to attract females to their area before the courtship ceremony begins, and these sounds can be heard from very far places in the wild.

Males begin to roam between different areas and perform their courtship rituals to attract females. They spread their tail feathers in a fan shape, strut them back and forth, and shake them to make a clanking noise to attract females’ attention. Females then choose males based on who has the largest size and most colourful feathers.

Peacock Sounds

Peacocks are noisy birds that make sounds to communicate with each other at all times, from early morning until late at night. They also emit low-frequency sounds that are inaudible to humans, warning their peers when they are in danger.

Feeding

The peacock is considered a carnivore and feeds on plants, vegetables, seeds, herbs, and many others. Thus, it feeds on anything suitable for it to eat, whether animal or plant, and examples of its basic foods: are fruits, grains, seeds, flower petals, plants, reptiles, amphibians, and insects.

They also eat when they are in the gardens, they find bread and waste, and they can also feed on small mammals, including mice and snakes, as the bird catches flies from the air and chases butterflies.

There are also three main types that differ according to their habitat, namely: the Congo, the green, and the Indian. It is worth noting that peacocks can be raised at home.

Peacock Homeland

The homeland of the peacock is the continent of Asia, the original home of the bird, and there are other habitats that differ according to the type; For example, the blue peacock lives in East Asia, while the Indian peacock lives in India, and the Congo peacock is home to Africa, and it can be found in some regions of Australia.

Therefore, it is often found in its native habitats in the desert, savanna areas and forests, and summer is the season for the activity and reproduction of the bird. In addition, it is found (especially in the Indian) in animal forests scattered around the world, and it can be accompanied by many individuals. Regardless of their habitat, peacocks are raised as a pet inside their homes or farms.

Habitat of the Indian Peacock

The Indian blue peacock lives abundantly in India and Sri Lanka and can be found in Kashmir, Nepal, Pakistan, Malaya, and the Congo. The Indian peacock is distinguished by the fact that it does not prefer to migrate or travel long distances. It often prefers to live in dry forests with deciduous leaves away from green forests.

In addition, the Indian peacock searches for places abundant with water. It lives in places between 900-1200 meters above sea level, specifically in forested forests, and is characterised by its ability to adapt to cold climates. It can survive despite the freezing temperatures in the places in which it lives.

Habitat of the green peacock

The green peacock lives in southeast Asia, specifically in tropical forests, and can be found in China, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Vietnam, and Thailand. Although the green prefers tropical forests, it can live in savannahs, grasslands, and agricultural lands. It has been shown that the green prefers to live away from humans, especially in dry forests near water.

Habitat of the Congo peacock

The Congo peacock lives on the continent of Africa, and it is an endangered species. The Congo type is the national bird of the Republic of Congo. It is found only in the Congo, specifically in the low-level rainforests in the Congo River basin. It is noteworthy that the Congo peacock is the only species that live outside the continent of Asia, and it is abundant in Salonga National Park in the Republic of the Congo.

Raising peacocks at home

Perhaps the idea of ​​breeding peacocks at home is not common, but some of those who have gardens with large areas may seem completely acceptable. As one bird needs an area of up to 25 square meters to be able to spread its feathers comfortably, to avoid the transmission of diseases, and to reduce the chances of fights and injuries between peacocks, and the following are the most essential tips that must be taken into account when raising peacocks:

  1. Provide a safe shelter to protect them from wolves, dogs and foxes. Therefore, tree houses are the best choice for that bird.
  2. Provide a special place for nesting, cover it with straw, and provide a heating lamp to protect the birds from the cold, mainly because wet and muddy conditions cause tail feathers to break and can lead to disease.
  3. Adjust the temperature of the barn where the chicks live so that it does not fall below 35 degrees Celsius during the first four or six weeks of their life, then start lowering the temperature at a rate of 2 degrees Celsius every week.
  4. Separate chicks from other peacocks until they reach puberty.
  5. Conduct medical examinations periodically to ensure the bird’s health status, combating external parasites such as lice and mites, if any, and giving the bird anthelmintic drugs once every two months.

If you enjoyed learning about this facinating animal why not check out more fantastic facts about other animals: Koalas, Land Animals, Sharks, Raccoons, Moon and Sun Bears, Rats, Sheep, Chickens, Cats, Pandas, Monkeys and Whales.

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