Anatomy of peacocks
The body length of a peacock is on average 100-125 cm, while the length of the tail is usually about 50 cm, but the length of the upper tail feathers is 120-150 cm. A noteworthy fact is that the peacock’s tail itself is gray and rather short. But it is the feathers of the peacock’s tail that are the famous decoration of the bird. Such feathers are decorated at the ends with “eyes” and can reach a length of up to 1.5 meters. The male weighs approximately 4 kg and a little more. Unlike males, the female peacock is smaller, less brightly colored and does not have elongated feathers above her tail.
The peacock's tail also plays a protective role. As soon as the peacock notices danger, it spreads its tail. A huge number of multi-colored eyes can throw a predator off target. The tail also helps the male attract his female during mating games. It’s only in September that the peacock’s tail begins to lose its plumage in order to appear again in all its glory in the spring.
Peacocks' voices are not as attractive as their appearance. It doesn't sound like chirping at all, more like a sharp scream or squeak. Most often, peacocks scream before it rains. And during the mating dance, males, on the contrary, remain silent.
Scientists believe that peacocks are capable of emitting an infrasonic signal with their elongated tail feathers, which the human ear cannot discern.
PEACOCK IS THE MOST BEAUTIFUL BIRD AMONG CHICKENS
The peacock (Pavo cristatus) is one of the largest representatives of the gallinaceae order. An ordinary peacock of strong build with a rather long neck, a small head bearing a peculiar crest, short wings, high legs and a medium-length tail. The male is especially characterized by unusually developed upper tail coverts, forming what is commonly called the “tail” of the peacock. This amazingly luxurious, ocellated “tail” blooming in a huge fan and beautifully colored brilliant plumage, which combines blue, green and red tones, created the peacock’s reputation as the most beautiful bird among chickens.
INDIAN PEACOCK – Pavo cristatus
The most famous of the peacocks is the Indian peafowl (Pavo cristatus). The male keeps a harem of several females that are smaller than him. The food is grain feed. Females usually find dense undergrowth as a nesting site. There are usually 4-8 eggs in a clutch. Chicks develop slowly; males begin to develop bushy tails at the age of three. There is a white form of the Indian peacock, but this one is rarer.
JAVAN PEACOCK - Pavo muticus
It lives from Thailand to the island of Java. It is kept less frequently in captivity than the Indian peacock, from which it is distinguished by blue and yellow areas on the head and green neck plumage. There are usually 7 eggs in a clutch; incubation lasts 30 days. Young peacocks become independent when they are at least eight weeks old.
CONGOLESIAN PEACOCK - Afropavo congensis
HYBRID OF WHITE AND INDIAN PEACOCK
The image of a peacock as a symbol
The peacock is a symbol of pride, an emblem of beauty and immortality. In many countries, the peacock was considered a royal bird, and Hindus revere it as sacred. In the peacock's homeland, South Asia, it is highly valued for warning of the approach of tigers, snakes and thunderstorms. It is believed that due to the beauty of its plumage, the peacock is able to “process” the venom of the snake it has struck.
In Russia, a completely different attitude towards peacocks developed due to the fact that only rich people could breed them. Therefore, only in the Russian consciousness did the peacock become a symbol of arrogance and arrogance. The expression “spread his tail like a peacock” acquired the meaning not only of courtship, but also of vanity and feigned pride.
According to Greek myth, the peacock was associated with Zeus' wife Hera. When Hermes killed the hundred-eyed Argos by putting him to sleep by playing the flute, Hera revived him by transferring Argos' eyes to the plumage of a peacock. Among the Romans, the peacock became an attribute of Juno, for whom the amoretti, winged babies, collected “eyes” from its tail. On Roman coins, the peacock was depicted as a sign of the divinity of the emperor's daughters.
In early Christianity, the image of a peacock was associated with the symbolism of the sun and began to be perceived as a symbol of immortality, like a turtle in the East, and the beauty of the incorruptible soul. In the Christian tradition, the “eyes” of a peacock sometimes symbolize the “all-seeing” Church. Since this bird periodically renews its plumage, it became a symbol of immortality, as well as resurrection, since it was believed that its flesh did not rot, even after lying in the ground for three days. The peacock is also an attribute of the Christian great martyr Barbara (III century) and the allegory of Pride.
What do peacocks eat?
The main source of food for peacocks is grain crops. This is why peacocks can live near villages - they raid fields, thereby damaging the crops. With their long and bushy tail, these birds move quite deftly and quickly through grass and bushes.
Peacocks also eat berries in large quantities; sometimes they can swallow a snake or small rodents. Young shoots of grass are also eaten.
Social structure and reproduction
Photo: Female and male peacock
Peacocks are polygamous, with three to seven females per male. The breeding season begins with the rainy season and ends with its end. If there are many males nearby, they disperse further from each other and each occupies its own area, where there must be several convenient places to demonstrate plumage.
They groom and show off in front of the females, and they appreciate the beauty of their feathers - they do not always find the gentleman irresistible, sometimes they go further to appreciate the other. When the choice is made, the female crouches, showing this - and mating occurs, after which she looks for a place to lay eggs, and the male continues to invite other females.
Females make nests in different places: on trees, stumps, in crevices. The main thing is that they are sheltered and protected and not located in open areas. After the female has laid her eggs, she constantly incubates them, being distracted only to feed - and spends much less time on this than usual, and tries to return faster.
Peacock breeding
Peacocks are polygamous birds. One peacock immediately lives with a whole group of females, which can include up to 5 individuals. In order to attract a female, the male peacock spreads his tail and walks in front of the female. When the female pays attention to the male, he turns away and shows his indifference. Then he spreads his tail again and so on until the couple comes together. The breeding season for peacocks is from April to September. In one clutch, females lay up to 10 eggs. Females incubate eggs for 28 days.
Chicks react quite sharply to cold and moisture. The female peacock protects and stays close to her offspring for quite a long time.
Until 1.5 years old, the male peacock does not have elongated feathers above his tail and is not particularly different from the female. The male lets go of his legendary tail at about three years of age. The lifespan of peacocks reaches 20 years on average.
Origin of the species and description
Birds descended from ancient reptiles - archosaurs; their immediate ancestors were flightless dinosaurs, such as thecodonts or pseudosuchians. So far, no intermediate forms have been found between them and birds, from which it would be possible to more accurately establish how evolution proceeded. Gradually, the skeletal and muscular structure allowing flight was formed, as well as plumage - it is believed that it was originally required for thermal insulation. Presumably, the first birds appeared at the end of the Triassic period or at the beginning of the Jurassic, although fossils of this age could not be found.
Video: Peacock
The oldest fossil birds found are 150 million years old and are Archeopteryx. There are large differences in structure between them and reptiles, presumably their ancestors, which is why scientists believe that there are intermediate forms that have not yet been found. Most modern orders of birds appeared much later - about 40-65 million years ago. Among them is the order Galliformes, which includes the pheasant family, to which peacocks belong. Speciation was particularly active at this time due to the evolution of angiosperms, followed by the evolution of birds.
Peacocks were described in 1758 by C. Linnaeus and received the name Pavo. He also identified two species: Pavo cristatus and Pavo muticus (1766). Much later, in 1936, a third species, Afropavo congensis, received a scientific description, made by James Chapin. At first it was not considered a species, but later its differences from the other two were discovered. But for a long time the black-shouldered peacock was considered an independent species, but Darwin proved that this was nothing more than a mutation that arose during the domestication of the peacock.
Peacocks used to be completely included in the subfamily, however, it was subsequently found that their rapprochement with other birds included in the subfamily, such as tragopans or monals, was unfounded. As a result, they became a genus within the family and subfamily Phasianaceae.
Types of peacocks:
There are only two types of peacocks: the common (Indian) peacock and the Green (Javanese) peacock. Experiments were also carried out and these two species were crossed. As a result, a new species of peacock has appeared that is capable of producing offspring.
These two types of peacocks differ in color. The common peacock has a blue neck, gray wings and a motley tail. There is also a black-winged peacock, which has blue wings and black shoulders. Completely white peacocks are found in nature. However, they are not albinos.
Common peacock
Black-winged (black-shouldered) peacock
White peacock
Where does the white peacock live?
Photo: White peacock bird
Initially, the common peacocks, which formed the basis of the species, lived in India. It is from there that the spread of these amazing birds begins. As for the white peacock specifically, it is a hybrid and therefore common in artificial conditions. Nature reserves and especially private collections are the main places of residence of white peacocks. Here special conditions are created for them that contribute to their comfortable life, as well as reproduction, which is especially important for such a rare species.
Under natural conditions, white peacocks try to populate those areas that are usually inhabited by representatives of other species (especially those that became the progenitors of this species). Representatives of the species love high humidity and tropical climates. Pakistan, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka are the main places where they can be found.
Interesting fact: The most comfortable and safe habitat for peacocks is India. Here they are considered sacred and therefore carefully protected. Dense impenetrable bushes and hills are the most comfortable areas for peacocks to live.
Peacocks prefer to live in somewhat non-standard families: a male and several females. At the same time, there is no supremacy in the family. Peacocks believe that equality greatly increases their chances of survival. During the day, peacocks try to choose dense thickets for their habitat, but they sleep high in the trees - there it is much easier to hide from predators.
Population and species status
Photo: Peacock in India
There are quite a few Indian peacocks in nature; they are considered one of the species whose existence is not threatened. In India, they are among the most revered birds, and few people hunt them; moreover, they are protected by law. As a result, their total number ranges from 100 to 200 thousand.
African peacocks have a vulnerable status; their exact population has not been established. Historically, it has never been particularly high, and so far there is no obvious tendency for its decline - they live in sparsely populated areas and do not come into contact with humans so often.
There is also no active fishing - in the Congo River basin there are animals that are much more attractive to poachers. Nevertheless, in order for the species to be absolutely not threatened, measures for its protection are still necessary, which have not yet been practically taken.
The most difficult situation is with the green peacock - it is listed in the Red Book as an endangered species. In total, there are about 20,000 individuals in the world, while their range and total numbers have been rapidly declining over the past 70-80 years. This happens for two reasons: the active development and settlement of territories occupied by peacocks, and their direct extermination.
In China and the countries of the Indochina Peninsula, peacocks are treated far less reverently than in India - they are hunted much more actively, and in markets you can find their chicks and eggs, and their plumage is sold. Chinese farmers are fighting them using poisons.
