16-4-2024 PANNA TIGER RESERVE, INDIA - INDIAN BLUE PEAFOWL (MALE) (Pavo cristatus)

Peacocks are polygamous, and the breeding season is spread out but appears to be dependent on the rains. Peafowls usually reach sexual maturity at the age of 2 to 3 years old. Several males may congregate at a lek site and these males are often closely related. Males at leks appear to maintain small territories next to each other and they allow females to visit them and make no attempt to guard harems. Females do not appear to favour specific males. The males display in courtship by raising the upper-tail coverts into an arched fan. The wings are held half open and drooped and it periodically vibrates the long feathers, producing a ruffling sound. The cock faces the hen initially and struts and prances around and sometimes turns around to display the tail. Males may also freeze over food to invite a female in a form of courtship feeding. Males may display even in the absence of females. When a male is displaying, females do not appear to show any interest and usually continue their foraging.

 The peak season in southern India is April to May, January to March in Sri Lanka and June in northern India. The nest is a shallow scrape in the ground lined with leaves, sticks and other debris. Nests are sometimes placed on buildings and, in earlier times, have been recorded using the disused nest platforms of the white-rumped vultures. The clutch consists of 4–8 fawn to buff white eggs which are incubated only by the female. The eggs take about 28 days to hatch. The chicks are nidifugous and follow the mother around after hatching. Downy young may sometimes climb on their mothers' back and the female may carry them in flight to a safe tree branch. An unusual instance of a male incubating a clutch of eggs has been reported.

18-4-2024 PANNA TIGER LODGE, INDIA - INDIAN BLUE PEAFOWL (MALE) (Pavo cristatus)

The Indian peafowl (Pavo cristatus), also known as the common peafowl, and blue peafowl, is a peafowl species native to the Indian subcontinent. It has been introduced to many other countries. Male peafowl are referred to as peacocks, and female peafowl are referred to as peahens, although both sexes are often referred to colloquially as a "peacock".

Indian peafowl display a marked form of sexual dimorphism. The peacock is brightly coloured, with a predominantly blue fan-like crest of spatula-tipped wire-like feathers and is best known for the long train made up of elongated upper-tail covert feathers which bear colourful eyespots. These stiff feathers are raised into a fan and quivered in a display during courtship. Despite the length and size of these covert feathers, peacocks are still capable of flight. Peahens lack the train, have a white face and iridescent green lower neck, and dull brown plumage. The Indian peafowl lives mainly on the ground in open forest or on land under cultivation where they forage for berries, grains but also prey on snakes, lizards, and small rodents. Their loud calls make them easy to detect, and in forest areas often indicate the presence of a predator such as a tiger. They forage on the ground in small groups and usually try to escape on foot through undergrowth and avoid flying, though they fly into tall trees to roost.

The function of the peacock's elaborate train has been debated for over a century. In the 19th century, Charles Darwin found it a puzzle, hard to explain through ordinary natural selection. His later explanation, sexual selection, is widely but not universally accepted. In the 20th century, Amotz Zahavi argued that the train was a handicap, and that males were honestly signalling their fitness in proportion to the splendour of their trains. Despite extensive study, opinions remain divided on the mechanisms involved.

The bird is celebrated in Hindu and Greek mythology, and is the national bird of India.

20-4-2024 BANDHAVGARH, INDIA - INDIAN BLUE PEAFOWL (MALE) (Pavo cristatus)

The Indian peafowl (Pavo cristatus) is a brightly-colored bird that lives mainly on the ground. Its loud calls make it easy to detect, and in forest areas often indicates the presence of a predator such as a tiger. The bird is celebrated in Hindu and Greek mythology and is the national bird of India.

The male Indian peafowl (peacock) is brightly colored, with a predominantly blue fan-like crest of spatula-tipped wire-like feathers, and is best known for the long train (tail) made up of elongated upper-tail covert feathers which bear colorful eyespots. These stiff feathers are raised into a fan and quivered in a display during courtship. Despite the length and size of these covert feathers, peacocks are still capable of flight. Females (peahens) lack the train and have a greenish lower neck and duller brown plumage. Downy chicks are pale buff with a dark brown mark on the nape that connects with the eyes. Young males look like the females but their wings are chestnut colored.

Indian peafowl live mainly on the ground where they forage in small groups that usually have a cock and 3 to 5 hens. After the breeding season, the groups tend to be made up only of females and young. They are found in the open early in the morning and tend to stay in cover during the heat of the day. Indian peafowl often dust-bathe and at dusk and groups walk in single file to a favorite waterhole to drink. When disturbed, they usually escape by running and rarely take to flight. During the night, peafowl roost in groups on tall trees but may sometimes make use of rocks, buildings, or pylons. 

Birds arrive at dusk and call frequently before taking their position on the roost trees. Indian peafowl produces loud calls, especially in the breeding season. They may call at night when alarmed and neighboring birds may call in a relay-like series. The most common calls are a loud 'pia-ow' or 'may-awe'. They also make many other calls such as a rapid series of 'ka-aan..ka-aan' or a rapid 'kok-kok'. They often emit an explosive low-pitched honk! when agitated.

 Indian peafowl are polygynous (one male to several females), and their breeding season usually depends on the rain. The peak season in southern India is April to May, January to March in Sri Lanka, and June in northern India. During this time several males may congregate at a lek site and these males are often closely related. Males at lek appear to maintain small territories next to each other and they allow females to visit them and make no attempt to guard harems. Females do not appear to favor specific males. The males display in courtship by raising the upper-tail coverts into an arched fan. The wings are held half open and drooped and it periodically vibrates the long feathers producing a ruffling sound. The cock faces the hen initially and struts and prances around and sometimes turns around to display the tail. Males may also freeze over food to invite a female in a form of courtship feeding. Males may display even in the absence of females. When a male is displaying, females do not appear to show any interest and usually continue their foraging. Indian peafowl nest on the ground; it is a shallow scrape lined with leaves, sticks, and other debris. The clutch consists of 4-8 fawn-to-buff white eggs which are incubated only by the female for about 28 days. The chicks are precocial (fully developed) and follow the mother around soon after hatching. Downy young may sometimes climb on their mother's back and she may carry them in flight to a safe tree branch. The chicks can fly about one week after hatching and become self-sufficient in 8 weeks. They usually reach reproductive maturity at the age of 2 to 3 years old.

10-8-2021 ARANJEUZ, MADRID - INDIAN BLUE PEAFOWL (MALE) (Pavo cristatus)

https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/1204-Pavo-cristatus