The white peacock is an amazing bird in artificial conditions and is rightly considered one of the most beautiful representatives of the family of these birds. They are actively bred both for private reserves and for a variety of wildlife. In their way of life and character, they are not much different from ordinary ones. The main emphasis is placed on external data.
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Origin Of The Species And Description Of White Peacock
The white peacock is one of the most controversial species of this species. Many breeders claim that this is just an ordinary albino peacock. But in reality, it’s not the case at all. This is a separate species of peacocks , which is a hybrid, since it was artificially bred on purpose to achieve such a unique shade.
The standard peacock was taken as a basis. By the way, this is not a new subspecies. White peacocks were widespread as far back as the 18th century. When crossing, the main task facing the breeders was precisely decorative. For the mighty of this world, they sought to breed such outlandish birds. And it succeeded.
After that, the breeders began to try to populate these birds with natural nature and they took root there pretty well. All peacocks belong to the Fazanov family . It is customary to distinguish between ordinary and green – the most common variations. Although there is also black and white, red.
Today, the list of species of these amazing birds is constantly expanding. This is primarily due to the fact that breeders are constantly working on improving breeds, breeding new ones for private collections. It is possible that soon more and more amazing colors will appear.
Appearance And Features Of White Peacock
Many different species have been artificially bred precisely in order to obtain a unique appearance. White peacocks are no exception. These amazing birds deserve special attention precisely because they are considered albinos all over the world.
Today they adorn the ponds of many wealthy citizens. By the way, when breeding hybrids, the emphasis was placed on their unpretentiousness in terms of living conditions. That is why now they feel equally comfortable both in very warm regions and in temperate, cold latitudes. The white peacock can be described as the dream of many young ladies: “blond with blue eyes.” Indeed, this is so! The ideal version of the albino peacock is distinguished by an excellent white tint and a specific eye color.
This bird is distinguished by a snowy shade, a crest and a visiting card – a gorgeous tail. In length, the bird can reach 1.3 m, of which 0.5 m is the tail. The wingspan of a bird often exceeds 1.5 m. But the weight often does not exceed 5-7 kg. Each feather is equipped with an additional pattern. If you look closely, you can see an eye-shaped pattern at the end of each of them. In white peacocks, this feature is the least pronounced.
When a peacock is born, it is covered with yellow fluff. In the first year, it is extremely difficult to distinguish males and females among white peacocks. Only by the age of two do they acquire characteristic external data, including the final color of the plumage. By the way, work on breeding peacocks continues and more and more often you can find completely original options. For example, a peacock with black and white plumage.
Despite such an attractive appearance, the peacock’s voice is simply disgusting. Since he has very good hearing, he can smell danger a mile away, and then immediately an unpleasant loud cry of these birds rises to the whole area.
Now you know how the white peacock spreads its tail . Let’s see where this amazing bird lives.
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Where Does The White Peacock live?
Initially, ordinary peacocks, which formed the basis of the species, lived in India . It is from there that the spread of these amazing birds begins. As for the specific white peacock, it is a hybrid and therefore common in artificial conditions. Nature reserves and especially private collections are the main residences of white peacocks. Here special conditions are created for them, contributing to their comfortable life, as well as reproduction, which is especially important for such a rare species.
Under natural conditions, white peacocks are trying to populate those areas in which representatives of other species usually live (especially those that became the progenitors of this species). Representatives of the species love high humidity and tropical climate. Pakistan , India, Nepal , Sri Lanka are the main places where you can find them.
Peacocks prefer to live in several non-standard families: a male and several females. At the same time, there is no supremacy in the family. Peacocks believe that equality greatly increases their chances of survival. During the day, peacocks try to choose dense thickets for themselves, but they sleep high in the trees – there it is much easier to hide from predators.
What Does The White Peacock Eat?
Under natural conditions, white peacocks need plant food for normal life. Nuts, berries and various small fruits are the basis of the bird’s diet. But at the same time, animal food is also necessary. Insects and small snakes are also often present on the white peacock’s menu.
For a balanced diet, the bird usually chooses what is required at this moment. If we talk about keeping birds in nature reserves and private zoos, then it is important to ensure that all these components are simultaneously present in the peacock’s diet. If birds live near people’s homes, then products from the garden can also become their favorite food. Most preferred are cucumbers, tomatoes and even bananas.
Also, when peacocks are kept in artificial parks, they are provided with cereals. A little boiled vegetables, fruits with the addition of greens are mixed into cereals. Potatoes are especially preferred for these birds. In the morning, it is very good to feed the birds with sprouted grain. This is especially useful in the winter. It is usually customary to feed these birds twice a day, but during the breeding season, it is possible to switch to a three-time diet.
In natural conditions, peacocks have long been famous in India for eating the fields of people living nearby. But those, considering them amazing birds, were in no hurry to fight this, affectionately allowing them to feed on their lands. Under natural conditions, the white peacock mainly prefers to eat berry bushes. They are also not averse to feasting on even small rodents . The main requirement for their normal life is a clean water body near their habitat.
Features Of Character And Lifestyle
White peacocks, like standard members of the species, have a number of interesting features. It should be noted right away that in nature and lifestyle, all types of peacocks are similar to each other.
The Characteristic Features Include:
- life in small flocks;
- the bird is awake during the day and sleeps at night, like most representatives of the animal world. At night, peacocks live on the crowns of large deciduous trees;
- representatives of the breed fly especially well, but still they do not lend themselves to overly long flights.
The tail is a remarkable feature of these birds. It serves males to attract females during the mating season. That is why, according to the condition of the tails and behavior, one can testify that the mating season of the peacocks has begun.
The rest of the time, peacocks move with their tail completely down. Although it is so long, it is absolutely not a hindrance. The peacock at the usual time folds its long tail and it does not interfere with its movement as actively as it does.
Usually birds do not attract much attention to themselves, preferring to behave calmly. They begin to scream and worry both on the eve of a clear danger and a hidden one. They usually become like this before thunderstorms, so in ancient times people often paid attention to these miracle birds as meteorologists.
In captivity, peacocks can behave very arrogantly and occasionally even peck at neighbors in the aviary if they do not like them. This is extremely rare. An additional feature of peacocks is their ability to adapt quickly and easily. In the new conditions of life, they very quickly master and already feel at home.
Social Structure And Reproduction Of White Peacock
In families of white peacocks, the number of females usually prevails over males. At the same time, there is absolutely no social structure and hierarchy. It is believed that absolutely everyone is equal. It is thanks to this that they manage to always act together and significantly increase their chances of living safely in the forest .
Each bird acquires the ability to reproduce at about 2-3 years. To attract females, the male simply spreads his tail and makes shrill cries. On average, a polygamous male can have up to 5 females. But all the same, this does not mean that he is ready to share them with someone. That is why very often real fights for females are tied up between peacocks.
The breeding season begins around April and lasts until September. During this time, the female can freely make up to 3 clutches. Female has a maximum of 10 eggs at a time. Eggs can even lie on the ground. It takes about a month that peacocks chicks are born from them. Under normal living conditions, one peacock may well live 20-25 years.
In peacocks, the parental instinct is extremely weak. The female can easily drop her eggs and go about business. Males also have no feelings for the expected generation. But this applies exclusively to natural living conditions. In nurseries, peacocks not only look after their babies, but can often look after other people’s testicles, if there are reasons for this.
Natural Enemies Of White Peacocks
At all times, in natural conditions, peacocks were hunted. Moreover, this applies both to enemies on the part of humans and directly to the wilderness itself. Among animals, tigers and leopards are the most dangerous for peacocks of all species . They are distinguished by unprecedented dexterity and therefore can easily catch a bird, which simply does not have time to take off, while the animal sneaks up to it unnoticed.
Population And Status Of The Species
It is extremely difficult to accurately assess the status of the white peacock population. This is due primarily to the fact that they mainly live in private collections. Therefore, it is almost impossible to calculate their number. To do this, you will need to estimate how many birds live in each collection.
We can only say one thing: the number of these birds is insignificant. This is due precisely to the fact that hybrids generally reproduce extremely problematic. Also, their life expectancy is not as long as that of ordinary birds living in natural conditions. At the same time, assignment of the status of a population requiring special protection is impossible, since this is applicable exclusively to those species of birds and animals that are common in natural conditions.
You need to be prepared for the fact that the population is rapidly declining and, if further measures are not taken to artificially breed these birds, then gradually they may completely disappear from the face of the earth. If we analyze the population of peacocks as a whole, then it is rapidly declining. In many countries, these birds are under special protection by the state, and in some countries peacocks are generally recognized as sacred birds.
But this applies specifically to pure representatives of the population. There are fewer and fewer of them. The reason is that they are gradually being replaced by hybrids. Birds are crossed among themselves in artificial conditions to obtain new and unique shades. Against this background, the number of representatives of the original breeds in natural conditions is becoming less and less. That is why, at this stage, reserves appear, in which the main task is to preserve the purebred representatives of the original species.
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