Peafowl
Peafowl encompasses three species of large, colorful pheasants, commonly identified by the terms "peacock" for males and "peahen" for females. These birds are renowned for the striking plumage of the males, particularly their extensive tail feathers, or trains, which can measure nearly five feet long and feature vibrant iridescent "eyes." The three species include the blue peafowl, native to India and Sri Lanka; the green peafowl, found from Myanmar to Java; and the Congo peafowl, which inhabits Africa. Males typically engage in spectacular mating displays to attract females, showcasing their tail feathers through intricate movements and sounds. Peafowl primarily inhabit dry forests and woodlands, forming small groups and foraging for a diverse diet that includes fruits, seeds, and insects. While they are generally not known to have significant natural predators, peafowl can run quickly to evade danger. With a lifespan of 15 to 20 years, these birds have been kept as pets for centuries and have been introduced to various countries worldwide. However, conservation concerns exist, particularly for the green peafowl, which is considered endangered.
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Peafowl
Peafowl is the proper name for three species of large pheasants commonly called peacocks. Peacock refers to a male, and peahen refers to a female of these species. The males are famous for their great and colorful plumage, or feathering, displays used in mating.
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Galliformes
Family: Phasianidae
Genus: Various (see below)
Species: Various (see below)
The bodies of peahens, or female peafowl, are around 2 1/2 feet (75 centimeters) long. The bodies of peacocks, male peafowl, are just as long, but they also have long plumage, or feathering, over their tails, called trains, which are nearly five feet (150 centimeters) long. Peacocks may also have ornamental feathers on the tops of their heads which the peahens do not have. Both males and females may have short crests of feathers on their heads called topknots.
Three species of peafowl live in the dry, open forests and woodlands of India and Asia. The blue (or Indian) peafowl live in India and Sri Lanka. Peacocks have mostly metallic blue-green plumage. The range of the green (or Javanese) peafowl is from Myanmar (formerly Burma) to Java. Peacocks in this species have green and bronze plumage. In both species, the peahens have brown and green plumage. A third species, the Congo peafowl, lives only in Africa. The cocks have blue and green plumage, and the hens' bodies are reddish and green with brown topknots on their heads.
The display of the peacock's tail plumage, when he is courting a peahen, is among the most spectacular displays of birds' plumage. Peacocks usually live in small groups or family parties most of the year. A peacock may have a harem of one to five peahens. At the start of the breeding season, the peacocks tend to live alone and then fight with each other with their claws and the spurs on their ankles. The winner claims the territory to which he attracts a group of females to mate. When a group of peahens enters his mating ground, the peacock begins his mating dance. He turns his back to the peahens and spreads his fan of nearly 200 feathers that stand up straight and span 6 to 7 feet (1 3/4 to 2 meters). These feathers are not his tail but are long feathers called tail coverts that cover the top of his shorter tail. Each feather is a long, white shaft with dozens of thin, round, hair-like feathers stretching out along the length of the shaft. These smaller hair-like feathers are iridescent blue and green, meaning they shine and reflect the light so they appear to change colors. A large, iridescent "eye" of purple, blue, green, and bronze crowns the top of each white shaft. After spreading his fan, the peacock begins moving his wings up and down and shaking his fan with a loud, rustling sound. As the peahen moves closer to him and into the small mating site he has chosen, he keeps his back to her and suddenly turns to face her. This shows her his brightly-colored fan with hundreds of "eyes." The peacock presses his fan forward over her and almost covers her. The male may turn his back on her again and continue rustling his fan, or she may try to run around behind him. This series of actions may be repeated several times before the two mate. Eventually, the male can catch the female and mate with her while covering both with his fan.
Each peahen with which the peacock mates then lays three to eight light green or tan eggs in a shallow hollow in the ground. The female continuously incubates the eggs for 26 to 30 days. The young can fly into trees after two weeks and grow crests on their heads after 30 days. Males get their colorful feathers after two years.
During the day, peafowls form flocks to forage for food. They are omnivorous, meaning they eat various plant matter and other living creatures. Items in their ground-feeding diets likely include fallen fruit, seeds, shoots, roots, insects, and invertebrates (creatures without skeletons). At night they roost high in trees.
Predators of peafowl in the wild are not known. They rarely fly but run from danger instead. People have kept peafowl as pets for centuries. Many peafowl have been transported to countries other than those where the birds originally lived. The International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species listed the green peafowl as endangered in 2018 and the Congo peafowl as near threatened in 2021.
The lifespan of peafowl is 15 to 20 years.
Species include:
Blue, Indian, or common peafowl Pavo cristatus
Congo or African peafowl Afropavo congensis
Green or Indonesian peafowl Pavo muticus
Bibliography
"Common Peafowl." Smithsonian's National Zoo & Conservation Biology Institute, nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/common-peafowl. Accessed 1 May 2024.
"Peacock Fact Sheet." PBS, 11 Aug. 2021, www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/blog/peacock-fact-sheet. Accessed 1 May 2024.
"Peafowl." San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, animals.sandiegozoo.org/animals/peafowl. Accessed 1 May 2024.