Popular breeds of peacocks for breeding in the country
All peacock breeds belong to the Pheasant family of the Chicken-like order. The birds are distinguished by long, variegated feathers that cover the tail. There are several varieties of peacocks. Some of them are bred piece by piece and they are called "spaulding".
Peacock breeds
In a subsidiary farm, you can keep one or more breeds of peacocks.
Plain (Indian)
Peacock features:
- The neck, head and chest are blue, which is green or golden in direct sunlight.
- The back is bluish green.
- The tail feathers are brown, and the upper tail is deep green with a slight sheen of bronze.
- The fan is black.
- The beak of an ordinary peacock is pinkish with a grayish-bluish tone
Adult birds of the Indian peacock, with proper care, weigh about 4.5 kg. The length of the whole body is 180 cm, and the size of the uppertail feathers reaches 180 cm.
The female of this species of peacocks is much smaller. Also, the female is distinguished by the color of the feathers. They are not as bright and colorful. The body length is about 1 m. The head and throat on the sides are snow-white, and the lower part of the neck, upper back and chest have a brownish-green tone.
Varieties of the common peacock:
- motley;
- dark motley;
- varnished;
- cameo;
- lavender;
- white eye;
- opal;
- purple;
- silver-colored;
- peach;
- midnight;
- yellowish green.
Common peacocks emit an unpleasant loud cry.
White peacocks
This is a unique species that is gaining popularity in the world every year. They are often called albinos by the people. This is a hybrid based on the common peacock.
White birds have blue eyes. Representatives with a red tint are less common. All this is due to the lack of melamine.
The feathers of the chicks are whitish-yellowish. Before two years, it is almost impossible to accurately determine the gender. The only difference is the length of the legs. In males, they are several centimeters larger. Beautiful tail feathers appear after puberty.
Peacock Congolese (African)
This species is found near the Congo River and in the forests of Zaire. Unlike other species, the African peacock has weak gender differences. Males do not have a feather plume with pronounced eyes.
Distinctive features:
- African peacock has a body length of 60 to 70 cm;
- there is no plumage on the head;
- the neck is covered with red feathers;
- on the crown there is a tuft of erect feathers;
- in males the feathers on the sheepskin coat are greenish-bronze, in females they are green with a slight metallic sheen;
- the beak is gray with a bluish tinge.
Also, the Congolese peacock has some differences in sexual behavior.
Peacock green
The green species belongs to the Asiatic peacocks. In nature, it is found in Indochina, Bangladesh, India. Also, birds live in West Malaysia, Thailand.
Peacocks are distinguished by their massive body. Feathers are bright with a slight metallic sheen. The legs are quite long. The voice is loud and specific.
Peacock green characteristic:
- the body of the male reaches 3 m in length;
- the wings grow about 0.54 m;
- tail length ranges from 0.4 to 0.47 m;
- uppertail feathers up to 1.6 m long.
The head is brown with a greenish tinge. Feathers around the eyes are bluish-grayish in color. The back and chest of this peacock are blue-green. If you look closely, you can see red and yellow spots. The lower part of the back is copper. Wings and shoulders are deep green. Flight feathers are brown. They are abundantly strewn with gray spots.
Peacocks tolerate cold and snowy winters well.
Green peacock subspecies:
- Javan peacock. This is a subspecies of the green peacock. His homeland is the lands of Malaysia. Also, the bird can be found on the island of Java. This subspecies differs in the presence of a greenish scaly color, which has a metallic shade. On the wings of the bird, blue spots are pronounced.
- Indochinese. In the wild, it can only be seen in Indochina. It has a rich green neck and a lot of dark elements on the secondary wing feathers. Around the eyes, the color is bright.
- Burmese. Homeland is the northwestern part of Burma. The color of this subspecies is the most pale. The chest and neck are olive blue. When exposed to direct sunlight, a metallic sheen appears. The head can be either dark purple or blue. The wings are dark.
There are very few Burmese peacocks left in nature.
Black-shouldered subspecies
This is a species of common peacock. The bird is distinguished by darker feathers that shine beautifully in the sun. Distinguishing a male from a female is not difficult. The female has much lighter feathers. The female's neck and back are strewn with brown stains. Less commonly, a yellowish tinge may be observed.
The uniqueness of this subspecies is the presence of 10 different shades on the feathers.
The most common colors are:
- yellow-green;
- white;
- carbonic;
- purple;
- bronze;
- peach.
Peacocks with striped wings can be observed in the wild. These are unique specimens, of which very few remain.
Peacocks are uniquely capable. They are able to warn of the approach of rain with strong and prolonged cries.
Red peacock
In the wild, red peacocks do not exist. Birds with this shade of feathers were bred in the 20th century. Since then, they have enjoyed incredible popularity.
The feathers of this species have a red-green-blue tint. Compared to other representatives of the fauna, the head of the red peacock is bare. It has a grayish blue tone. The throat is reddish-orange in color. The crest is colorful. It consists of several erect feathers. There are several spurs on the paws.
Tail feathers in males are short. They are also distinguished by the absence of "eyes". The female lays 2 to 4 eggs. It will take 27 days for the chicks to be born. All this time, the male is near his pea, protecting the future offspring.
These birds live in the Congo basin. They can also be found in the forests of Zaire.
Royal peacock
The royal peacock is the white peacock described above. So the inhabitants of India, Thailand and Vietnam have it. Due to their monochromatic color, they often become a decoration of royal gardens. In some areas of India, this species of peacock is a sacred bird.
The peacock looks very beautiful not only during the loose tail, but also in flight.
All peacock breeds are unique in their own way. This is the most beautiful bird in nature, to which they are raised with incredible respect and love. Peacocks are part of the royal gardens, they are used in magic and are also used to determine weather conditions.