Profile
In flight
Game Birds
Indian Peafowl
Pavo cristatus
- common
- 16 km/h
- Starter
- Least Concern
That "tail" isn't a tail. It's a fan of 5-foot feathers the male rattles in a dazzling display. Pure showmanship.
- Population
- Not numerically quantified by IUCN/BirdLife; described as common to locally very common, with population trend increasing (possibly rapidly, per State of India's Birds 2023 data cited in the BirdLife factsheet)
- Habitat
- Open forest edges, deciduous and moist forest, scrubland, and cultivated land, typically near water; found from sea level up to about 2,250 m elevation
- Fun fact
- The male's iconic shimmering "tail" is not actually the tail at all but a massively elongated set of upper tail-covert feathers, which it fans out and rattles during courtship display.
- Range
- Native to the Indian subcontinent (India, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka); introduced/feral populations established in Australia, New Zealand, Japan, the Bahamas, the USA, and elsewhere
- Diet
- Omnivorous — grass, seeds, flower buds, fruits, grains, insects, and small reptiles; also raids agricultural crops such as peanuts, tomatoes, and chili peppers
- Size
- 2.2 m
- Wingspan
- 1.5 m
- Lifespan
- 15 years
