13/01/2025
Indian Peafowl
The collective name for peacocks is peafowl. The male of the variety is called a peacock and the female peafowl is called a peahen.
The Indian peacock is also the National Bird of India.
Peafowl (Pavo cristatus) belongs to the Phasianidae family. They are among the largest of all birds that fly.
Phasianidae is the pheasant family, a bird family that includes among its members the jungle fowl (from which the domestic chicken is descended), partridge, peacock, pheasant, and quail.
The two most-recognizable species of peafowl are:
The blue, or Indian, peacock of India and Sri Lanka.
The green or Javanese, peacock (P. muticus) found from Myanmar (Burma) to Java.
Habitat:
The Indian peafowl is a native of India and some parts of Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
The species are currently habituated more in central Kerala, followed by southeast and northwest parts of the state.
At least 19% of the states’ area is suitable habitat for this species and this may increase by 40-50% by 2050.
They are well adapted to living in forest edges and cultivated areas.
Concerns:
They are a threat to paddy farmers in Kerala. They destroy its seeds and cause man-animal conflict.
Agriculture expansion and deforestation have caused other species to ‘invade human territory’.
The growing population of peafowls signals climate change. They are known to grow and thrive in dry conditions.
Protection Status:
IUCN: Least Concern
Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972: Schedule I
