My Curious Peafowl
Here at my Bedford, New York farm, my peafowl love to get out and explore.
Peafowl are very social birds - they usually travel in groups, enjoy foraging, and often play together. They are also very loyal and tend to stay where they are well-fed and well-protected. I currently have 16 of these magnificent birds. They live in a very safe and comfortable pen near my stable, where they get lots of attention from visitors. Yesterday, I let them out for a short while to roam the property - they walked around the stable, through the gardens, and even perched high on the rooftops. And then after a few hours, they were led back to their familiar enclosure, where I know they are safe and sound.
Enjoy these photos.
-
- I keep all my birds in large, protected enclosures because of the predators that sometime wander through the property, such as coyotes. On this day, I decided to give the peafowl a little freedom to explore. Here is one male walking past the long boxwood allée.
-
- And here is an all-white male following closely behind.
-
- These birds are going in the opposite direction, but where one goes, others are sure to follow.
-
- Peafowl are smart, docile and adaptable birds. They are also quite clever. It is not unusual for peafowl to come running when the food appears.
-
- This group is headed toward my new raised bed vegetable garden, checking out the ginkgo tree and all its fallen leaves on the way.
-
- Peafowl are ground feeders. They do most of their foraging in the early morning and evening. As omnivores, they eat insects, plants, grains, and small creatures.
-
- In all I have 16 peafowl – juveniles and adults. Within a year, peacocks are almost completely mature. Two year olds resemble adult males, but their tails are still short and need time to develop. They become sexually active around the age of three. Peahens develop faster than peacocks and can mate as early as one.
-
- Here are two in front of my stable office exploring every nook. Peafowl are happiest when living in small groups. They often walk around following each other.
-
- As beautiful as peafowl are, they don’t make very melodious sounds. Peafowl have 11 different calls, with most of the vocalizing made by the peacocks. And, with their sharp eyesight, peafowl are quick to see predators and call out alarms. Oftentimes, I can hear them from across the farm.
-
- Like many birds, peafowl enjoy roosting at higher levels. In the wild, this keeps them safe from predators at night. Here is one peacock up on the stable office roof just watching all the activities.
-
- Peafowl also have acute hearing, but can be poor at discerning from what direction certain sounds originate.
-
- After a few hours, it was time to lead the ostentation back to its pen. Peafowl are members of the pheasant family. There are two Asiatic species – the blue or Indian peafowl native to India and Sri Lanka, and the green peafowl originally from Java and Burma, and one African species, the Congo peafowl from African rain forests. Here is one of my blue peacocks – it is no longer breeding season, so his tail is short. It will grow full feathers again next spring when mating season starts.
-
- Here is a curious female – coming up to see the camera. Female peafowl are more dull brown in color.
-
- Both male and female peafowl have a fan-shaped crest on their heads called a corona. It may take up to one year for a corona to reach full size.
-
- And look at its feet. A peafowl’s legs are very strong. They have three toes on each foot facing forward, and one facing backwards. They also have sharp, powerful metatarsal spurs that are used for defense. Also, as they develop, males will tend to have longer legs than females.
-
- Here is a female perched on the other side of the yard. I always call out to them whenever I drive by… and oftentimes, they answer.
-
- Many had also gone into the coop to perch. Peafowl will look at you in the eye; however, if you stare at them or seem aggressive in your body movements, these birds will feel threatened. Talking softly and keeping eyes averted tells them you are not a predator.
-
- They are put indoors every night – to keep them extra safe.
-
- This white peacock is roosting on the rafters inside the coop. The white peacocks are so beautiful. White peacocks are the result of leucism or albinism. While leucistic white peacocks are far more common than albino peacocks, both types are rare.
-
- And remember, only the males are peacocks. The females are peahens, and both are called peafowl. Babies are peachicks. A family of peafowl is called a bevy. And a group is called an “ostentation” or a “muster.” I am very happy my ostentation of peafowl is thriving here at Cantitoe Corners.
Martha Pins
Martha Tweets
