It was in the year 2014.,when I saw peacock ,a peahen and a chick sitting on a branch of a tree in a relaxing mood. A thought came to my mind. Does peafowl has a family life ?.
The literature on the subject is silent except for the fact that a peacock has a harem consisting of 4 to 5 females ie peahen. Really speaking I have not seen it till date. I still have my doubt as far as peacock having HAREM which was a common practice during Kingdoms. A king having lot of queens in his harem.
Being a tiger lover for so many years I know that male tiger has 4 to 5 females in his territory with whom he mates and have off springs. It is not easy for any other male tiger to come and mate with a female (tigress ) in his area unless and until the opponent male tiger fight out and defeats the male tiger controlling the females.
Once again I happen to observe the same trio foraging in the grassland in the heart of Delhi. My curiosity then increased. I started following the same trio. I again saw them basking in the sun in morning hours , when peacock and peahen were on left side and the chick was on the right side on a route. The photograph clearly brought out the family behavior.
On 27th of June 2015, I was blessed with a shot wherein peacock is in a dancing pose and a peahen with her 3 chicks of hardly 20 days is standing in front of the peacock. ..This was my first family photograph of life.
On 15th July 2015 I saw a peahen with a chick coming on the road and then coming to the Delhi Zoo side hedge. The peahen flew leaving behind the small chick. Immediately a peacock came and gave solace to the chick. The chick then made efforts to fly and cross over the hedge. Only when the chick crossed the hurdle the peacock left the place as if he has completed his task.
I also observed that two chicks left by their mother were caring of each other and a peacock came from behind and showed affection towards them. An unusual behaviour.
All the above behavior observed from time to time in the wild indicates the family life. This is similar to what has been observed in Tigers . A real incidence from Ranthambore Tiger reserve where a male tiger reared his cubs after the death of mother, surprised the naturalist all over the world. This was observed for the first time in the wild.
Enjoy the new Discovery …..family life of Peafowl….from the capital of India ..New Delhi.
