Visiting My Growing Flock of Peafowl
So many of you comment on how much you enjoy hearing about the animals at my farm, so I thought it was time to share an update on my peafowl.
Over the weekend, we made a few changes to my peafowl flock. We welcomed two new birds - a one and a half year old Bronze peacock and a two and a half year old Indiablue Pied peahen. They came from Pedda Reddy, a very knowledgable and passionate peafowl breeder and raiser in Dutchess County, New York. We also returned the bright blue Black Shoulder Pied peacock. He had been living here at the farm since 2015, but was a little territorial around my other males. He is now back at Pedda's and doing very, very well.
Here are some photos - enjoy.
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- All my peafowl live in a very safe and comfortable area adjacent to my Linden tree allee. The older peafowl coop on the left currently houses the newest additions to our flock, while the coop on the right is home to three peacocks and three peahens.
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- My new Bronze peacock and new Indiablue Pied peahen have only been here two days. They need time to acclimate to their surroundings, but they’ve been getting lots of attention here at the farm.
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- Peafowl are very smart, docile and adaptable birds that rarely ever stray from their home territories. It will take these birds about a year to know this is their home, so they will remain in this enclosure until they are ready to roam free along with the others.
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- Bronze peafowl are very rare – not all breeders will have them. This male is so beautiful. He will have chocolate brown tail feathers at three-years of age – he’s half way there.
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- As you may know, 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.
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- This new peahen is very healthy, tame and docile. Pedda also said she laid about 15-eggs this last breeding season, and nearly a dozen peachicks hatched.
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- My outdoor birds all have access to natural perches made from old felled trees here at the farm. It is important that they have a variety of perches upon which to roost.
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- Here is another perch repurposed from an old felled tree – we simply “planted” it in the enclosure – the birds love sitting on its branches and watching all the activity around them.
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- An indoor ladder provides another nice roosting spot. While peafowl are ground feeders and ground nesters, they still enjoy roosting at higher levels. It also helps to keep them safe from predators.
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- The birds get a healthy mix of cornmeal, soybean, and wheat. We purchase all our grains from Bennie’s Feed Barn in Bedford Hills. We also feed the birds spinach, cabbage, and squash from my garden. In the wild, peacocks are omnivores – they eat insects, plants, and small creatures.
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- The entire space is enclosed to keep them safe. This netting is made of nylon. It is flexible enough to mold around the hoop structure, and strong enough to weather the elements and to keep the peafowl protected.
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- If you look closely, one of the peahens is at entrance of the other coop keeping an eye on the new residents. I am so happy these peafowl are doing so well at the farm.
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- Because most of these peahens have grown up here, they are all very accustomed to the crew and always love visitors.
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- The white peacock in the back is a Black Shoulder Silver Pied. The Silver Pied is a white bird with about 10 to 20-percent color on it, including the bright iridescent blue. He has white-eyed feathers in the train when it is full grown. After breeding season ends in August, the males lose their long tail feathers, and then grow them all back before the next breeding timeframe.
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- These birds are very curious and friendly, especially when recognizing who their regular feeder is. It is not unusual for peafowl to run en masse when the food appears. They adore their “Uncle Dawa”.
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- Here are the other peafowl in the room next door – two males and a female who have all grown up together. This trio is very close.
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- The peafowl love exploring the grounds. Peafowl do most of their foraging in the early morning and evening. This pair is in their paddock walking towards the new arrivals to see how they’re doing.
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- On another day, these two young males are seen at the entrance to my Carriage House. 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.
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- Peafowl are happiest when living in small groups. They can fly short distances, but prefer to walk most of the time. These fellows can often be seen walking around the stable or down by the chicken coops and vegetable garden.
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- And here they are on top of the fence railing in the courtyard behind my Winter House kitchen. They certainly are having a great time exploring Cantitoe Corners.
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