This Is our Village

Saturday, April 17, 2010

IS THIS INDIA OR SRI-LANKA, OR WHAT IS THIS BIRD DOING HERE?

Hi All,
Regarding this Peacock at Windsor, the following may prove instructive: 
Dave Israel
REF: http://birds.suite101.com/article.cfm/facts_about_indian_peacocks

"The Indian Peafowl (Pavo cristatus), also called the Blue Peafowl or Common Peafowl, is native to India and Sri Lanka. It is the national bird of India. Because of its legendary beauty, it was domesticated more than 2000 years ago, and has since been exported to many other countries. The familiar bird with the beautiful display feathers is actually the male, or peacock—the female bird is called a peahen, and young are called peachicks.


Peafowl are classified with the pheasants in the taxonomic family Phasianidae, and are thus related to partridges, quail, chickens, and turkeys. There is one other peafowl species in the genus Pavo: Pavo muticus, the Green Peafowl.

Blue Peafowl Natural History and Habitat Facts

Peacocks and peahens can live for at least 15 years in captivity, but they probably do not live as long in the wild:


•The natural habitat of peafowl is dry open forest. The birds remain on the ground most of the time and do not fly long distances.


•In the wild, peafowl nest and feed on the ground, but roost high in the trees, ascending early in the evening.


The eerie call of the peafowl is often heard when rain is approaching.


•The white peacock, seen more often in captivity, is a genetic mutation, rather than an albino bird.


•Peafowl tend not to get on well with other domestic animals.


•Although their natural ranges do not overlap, the Blue Peafowl and the Green Peafowl, native to Southeast Asia, can interbreed. The resulting hybrid bird is called a Spalding.


Blue Peafowl Feeding Facts


Domestic peafowl are valued in India because they eat young cobras, thus keeping the numbers of these venomous snakes down in human communities. The birds are relatively easy to feed:


•Peafowl eat insects, seeds, plant seedlings, fruit, and small reptiles.


•Because of their taste for seeds and insects, peacocks and peahens are drawn to gardens and compost piles, where they can become a nuisance.


Courtship and Breeding Facts


Peafowl will breed at about two years of age; however, the peacocks’ magnificent display feathers continue to grow until the birds are six years old. Peahens tend to prefer the peacock with the most spots on his feathers, so older males have more breeding success."

1 comment:

  1. Could the Beautification Cmte get a flock of flamingos for the village, what an attraction!
    Not plastic.

    ReplyDelete

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