VARIETIES OF PEACOCKS AND THEIR FEATURES WITH PHOTOS

Peacocks, due to their fan-shaped tail with a bright color, are considered the most beautiful birds of the family of Fazanov detachment of the Curonidae. It is the males that belong to the long variegated feathers covering the tail, which have a flat shape. Peacocks are divided into two genera: Asian and African. All Asian peacocks are divided into common and green peacocks. Hybrid forms originated in captivity, and they are called "spading".

Did you know? Kate Spaulding first crossed the Asian species of peacock and received offspring capable of breeding.

Consider what the peacocks are, their classification and characteristics.

Indian, or ordinary peacock

The Indian peacock is one of the most numerous species and has no subspecies. In natural habitat is widespread in Nepal, Bangladesh, India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka. However, color mutations in this type are inherent. The bird has been kept by man for many generations and is subjected to artificial selection.

What is commonly called the peacock's tail, in fact, it is not. What are the bright, long feathers that cover the peacock's tail called? This plume is called "nadkhvoste". The body length of the peacock is 1-1.25 m, the tail is 0.4-0.5 m. The bright feathers of the tails are characteristic only of males, have a length of 1.2-1.6 m. The head, neck, chest are of bright blue color, the bottom of the body black, and the back is green. The male has a mass of 4-4.25 kg; the female is smaller, with a calmer color of feathers.

Peacock and pawa up to 1.5 years are no different in appearance. Bright long feathers grow only at puberty of the male at the age of 3 years. The blue peacock is a polygamous bird. The male lives with 3-5 females. From April to September, the female lays 4-10 eggs directly on the ground. The incubation period lasts 28 days. In captivity, peacocks can make up to three clutches per season, but they are not very prolific and do not get along well with poultry. The peacock's life span is about 20 years.

Breeds of peacocks are formed by man as a result of breeding work. Will consider species of common peacock relative to the color of feathering:

White (white) - is not albinic, refers to the basic color of the plumage, known until 1823;
Black-shouldered, or lacquered (black-shouldered, japanned) - refers to the secondary color of the plumage, known in Europe since about 1823, in America since 1830;
Pied - belongs to the secondary color of the plumage, known until 1823;
Dark motley (dark pied) - known since 1967;
Cameo, or silver-grayish-brown (cameo, silver dun) - refers to the basic color of the plumage, discovered in the United States in 1967;
Cameo black shoulders (cameo black-shouldered) - identified in the United States in the mid-1970s;
White peephole (white-eyed) - refers to the secondary color of plumage, identified in the United States in the late 1970s;
Charcoal (charcoal) - refers to the main coloring plumage, identified in the United States in 1982. Females of this mutation carry unfertilized eggs;
Lavender (lavender) - identified in the United States in 1984;
Bronze Buford (Buford bronze) - refers to the main color of plumage, identified by Buford Ebbolt in the United States in the 1980s;
Purple (purple) - refers to the main color plumage, identified in the United States in 1987;
Opal (opal) - refers to the main coloring plumage, identified in the United States in the early 1990s;
Peach (peach) - refers to the main coloring plumage, identified in the United States in the early 1990s;
Silver-pied - refers to the secondary color of the plumage, found in the United States in 1991-1992;
Midnight (midnight) - refers to the main color plumage, identified in the United States in 1995;
Yellow-green (jade) - refers to the main color of the plumage, discovered in the USA in 1995.

Important! Along with positive qualities, peacocks have some negative ones: they have a rather unpleasant voice, cause damage to the decorativeness of the habitat, are aggressive to other birds.

There are 20 variations for each main color of the plumage, excluding white. As a result of combinations of primary and secondary colors, 185 varieties of the common peacock can be obtained. Consider the main variations of the peacock ordinary.

White peacock

The white peacock is a fairly common species of common peacock. Birds have blue eyes, so they cannot be albinos. The white peacock received fame even before 1823. It was found in its natural habitat and successfully became bred in captivity. The white color of the bird is genetically determined.

The chicks have a yellow color with white wings. Up to two years, males and females cannot be distinguished by color - they are white. A distinctive feature is the length of the legs: in males it is longer. After puberty (after 2 years), the male has snow-white long feathers. Outlines of ocelli are poorly distinguished on tail feathers. For white offspring, only white peacocks should be crossed with white peacocks.

Important! During the mating season, the peacock spreads its tail, attracting females. Scientists claim that the spots on peacock feathers are an indicator of its immune system. Therefore, the female thus chooses the most healthy male to continue the race.

Black-winged peacock

The black-winged peacock (Pavo muticus nigripennis) is a species of the common peacock and differs from it in more black shiny feathers of the shoulders and wings with a bluish tinge. The female is slightly lighter than the male in color. Her neck and back are covered with brown and yellowish stains.

Did you know? Until the end of the fifteenth century, peacocks in Europe were grown for meat, until this delicacy displaced the turkey.

Green peacock

The green peacock is a species of Asian peacocks, living in Southeast Asia. In its natural habitat it can be found in Indochina, Bangladesh, Northeast India, West Malaysia, Thailand, South China, and Java. Compared with the common peacock, green has a much larger size, brighter plumage with a metallic sheen, longer legs, neck and crest, less loud and harsh voice.

The body length of the male is 1.8–3 m, the wings are 0.46–0.54 m, the tail is 0.4–0.47 m, and the bright feathers covering the tail are 1.4–1.6 m. Head and upper part of the neck has a brown-green color, the area around the eyes is bluish-gray, the lower part of the neck is greenish-golden scaly type, chest and back are blue-green with red and yellow spots, the lower back is copper-bronze, shoulders and the wings are dark green, the feathers are brown in color with black and gray spots.

Bird weight up to 5 kg. The elongated feathers are similar in color to the feathers of common peacock, but have a metallic copper-red tint. Feathers on crest wider, beak black, legs gray. The female is almost the same color as the male, but differs in smaller size and weight. It is two times smaller than the male, and has 4 times the smallest mass.

Consider the subspecies of peacock green, which differ in the color of plumage and geography of habitat.

Javanese green peacock

The Java peacock (Pavo muticus muticus) is a subspecies of the green peacock, living in Malaysia and the island of Java. A distinctive feature of this subspecies is the golden-green scaly color with a metallic tint and a blue spot on the wings of the bird.

Did you know? The peacock, in comparison with other poultry, perfectly maintains winter cold, suffering a little from snow.

Indochinese green peacock

Indochinese peacock (Pavo muticus imperator) is a subspecies of peacock green and dwells in Indochina. It is similar to the muticus subspecies, but has a dark green neck and more black color on the opaque and minor feathers of the wings. Coloring around the eyes of a peacock is brighter compared to other subspecies.

Burmese Green Peacock

The Burmese peacock (Pavo muticus spicifer) is a subspecies of the green peacock and lives in northeastern India, northwest Burma. By color refers to the palest of all subspecies. The neck and chest are olive-blue in color with a metallic tinge, the head is dark purple or blue, with more black tones on the wings. Since 1940 is the national symbol of Myanmar. Copies of this subspecies are considered almost extinct.

African, or Congolese peacock

The African peacock (Afropavo congensis) was previously considered akin to the genus of Asian peacocks. But later a number of differences emerged, which allowed them to be distinguished into a separate genus. Compared to Asiatic peacocks, African ones show weak differences between males and females, there is a lack of feather plume with eyes in the male, and there are significant differences in the sexual behavior of individuals. The Congolese peacock was first described by American zoologist James Chapin in 1936. This is a wild peacock that lives in the forests of Zaire and the Congo River basin.

The male is 64-70 cm long, without plumage on the head in blue-gray color, in the throat area of orange-red color. The neck is covered with short velvet-black feathers. On the head a crest of a bunch of upright feathers. The bird's body is bronze-green on top with large purple edging. Nadkhvoste, as in Asian peacocks, covered with bright oval spots. The tail is black with a greenish-blue border, the undertail is black.

On long legs there is one spur for both male and female. The beak is gray with a blue tint. The female is 60-63 cm long, has a crest chestnut-brown color, exposed parts of the head are gray-brown in color, and necks are red. The body is green in color with a metallic sheen and light brown striation. African peacocks are monogamous species. In nature, build nests on the stumps, in the forks of the branches. The female lays and incubates 2-4 eggs for 26-27 days. The male is constantly nearby and guards the nest.