Sri Lankans call it "Walikukula" which is known as Ceylon jungle fowl is a very colorful and elegant looking bird which has the distinction of being the National bird of Sri Lanka. This beautiful cock is native to Sri Lanka and as you might know Sri Lanka once had been named as Ceylon and that's how this creature has had its name. They eat seeds, grains and insects and it mostly lives on trees.
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| Ceylon jungle fowl |
Because this bird is extremely shy, so it's almost never found as pets in households. Though Ceylon jungle fowl can be found at national parks and jungles all over the country, it's mostly seen at the dry Zone. Ceylon jungle fowl is closely related to the common red jungle fowl but you can identify it by reddish orange legs, head topped with a comb which is slightly jagged and the spot of bright yellow on its comb. And it is very capable for fly using its wings than other village or household fowl.
Peacocks:
Impressive feathered beauties
The avian world is full of feathered beauties that mesmerize us with their vibrantly hued plumage and their melodious calls.And so it may prove difficult to rank these birds on a 1-10 scale since many of us would have our own preferences when it comes to selecting the most attractive birds. However, the male peafowl or the peacock as it is popularly called is sure to be placed high in the scale due to its beautiful fan-like tail.Most of you may have seen the peacock proudly strut and dance displaying its captivating tail feathers of iridescent hues that change and shimmer in the light .These tail feathers, or coverts, spread out in a distinctive train which is more than 60 per cent of the bird's total body length .
They are adorned with colourful "eye" markings of blue, gold, red, and other hues.Even if you have not seen this eye catching display you are sure to have seen the beautiful peacock feathers which are used in many religious rituals, especially at Kataragama.
Many of you may have seen these impressive feathered beauties or at least heard of them but you may not know many details about them. So, today let's enhance your knowledge about this species of bird called the peafowl which belongs to the pheasant family. There are three species of peafowl; Indian peafowl or Blue peafowl (Pavo cristatus) which is native to South Asia, but has been introduced and is semi-feral in many other parts of the world , the Green peafowl and the Congo peafowl.
There are several colour mutations of Indian peafowl. These very rarely occur in the wild, but selective breeding has made them common in captivity. The leucistic white peafowl and the Black-shouldered or Japanned mutation were initially considered as a subspecies.
 A peacock displays its fan-like tail. |
The leucistic white peafowl |
The blue peacock lives in India and Sri Lanka, while the green peacock is found in Java and Myanmar (Burma).The more distinct and little-known species, the Congo peacock, inhabits African rain forests.The Congo peafowl is listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) as 'vulnerable .' - (At risk because of their natural declining numbers) are facing high-risk in their natural surroundings. The Green peafowl is listed as 'endangered'. - In the immediate probability of becoming extinct and require protection to exist.
A male peafowl is called a peacock and the female a peahen but the term peacock is commonly used to refer to both species by many. The male (peacock) Indian peafowl has iridescent blue-green or green coloured plumage; metallic blue on the crown, the feathers of the head being short and curled. The fan-shaped crest on the head is made of feathers with bare black shafts and tipped with blush-green webbing. A white stripe above the eye and a crescent shaped white patch below the eye are formed by bare white skin. The sides of the head have iridescent greenish blue feathers. The back has scaly bronze-green feathers with black and copper markings. The scapular and the wings are buff and barred in black, the primaries are chestnut and the secondaries are black. The tail is dark brown and the "train" is made up by elongated upper tail coverts (more than 200 feathers but the actual tail has only 20 feathers) and nearly all of these feathers end with an elaborate eye-spot. A few of the outer feathers lack the spot and end in a crescent shaped black tip. The underside is dark glossy greenshading into blackish under the tail. The thighs are buff coloured. The male has a spur on the leg above the hind toe.