Peacock Plumage
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By :
Lenith Hinaloc
Submitted
2008-01-02 04:38:14 |
For the first few months I was hardly distinguishable from my sisters. Our tail feathers were the same. At eight months it came time, under the peacock system, to leave home and fend for myself. This gave mother a respite before her next stint at family raising. By this time I was developing my characteristic tail feathers that grow above the real tail feathers. It is a slow process. Not until my fourth year of life could I hope to attain the full male plumage.
Gradually as the months passed I acquired an immaculate suit of down and feathers. I got to be fully grown, weighing eleven pounds, and was almost seven feet from head to tail. My upper tail coverts alone were five feet in length. I had matured, and had the prospect of living to the ripe old age of twelve. I could look forward, now, to an annual change of clothing, and perhaps even to be admired by human creatures who carry cameras instead of guns.
If you could only have a good look at me! Starting at my head, I have a crest of upright plumules with a bare patch of white on each side. My eyes are also set in a patch of white. My longish neck is covered with brilliant metallic green and blue plumage, breaking out into mottled green under my wing feathers. This turns almost to black on my tummy. Notice that my wings, in contrast, are a gray, speckled with black. My real tail feathers, which you cannot see, are a brownish color.
My upper tail feathers, trailing behind for five feet, are a bronzy green and blue. These upper tail feathers develop spraylike webs on which are displayed the familiar glittering eyes or ocelli. At will I can erect these vertically above my back spread fanwise, and I can hold them there supported by the actual tail feathers. I can put on quite a show.
But this display is not primarily for the pleasure of human admirers. It is my way of winning mates. When our annual procreation period begins, I set out in search of prospective mates. As soon as I spot one I turn on all my charm. I perform a sort of dance before her. With chest jutting out and upper tail feathers held high, strut to and fro leaning forward. At the same time I utter a harsh, raucous cry, not at all musical to you, but it lets her know I am interested. At the climax of my display I vibrate my lower tail feathers, which in turn gives my train feathers a shimmering appearance to the accompaniment of a rustling sound. And it works, for in the breeding season, January to October, I can usually win four or five mates. Then I feel like a bejeweled maharajah strolling amid his harem.
Of course, my brilliant plumage can also be a hazard. With all this extra equipment, how does one evade hunters and commercialists who are out to eat me or take my feathers? True, there is legislation that restricts the hunting and killing of my kind, but there are always those who are willing to ignore the law. Can you imagine how difficult it is for me to keep out of harms way?
There is one thing I can do to lessen the danger. Each year, by molting my long train feathers, I can leave these beautiful mementos lying around on the ground for collectors to find and carry off. Then, too, in spite of my feathery impediment, I have the ability to glide silently through dense thickets with the agility of a cobra. Also, to many people I am an object reverence. They think of me as a sort holy bird. So peacock hunters do not dare to carry on their nefarious work openly.
Peafowl History
But my story would not be complete without a little peacock history. I suppose you know that we belong to the pheasant family of birds. However, we have so many cousins among the pheasants that the experts have classified us under the term Pavo cristatus. Probably that is because our crest distinguishes us from our distant cousins. When my ancestors emerged from Noahs ark they eventually settled in India. Here, for thousands of years, my kind have served as ornamental birds in royal courts and aristocratic estates. Even abroad they served as plumed ambassadors in foreign palaces.
It was a great day in peacock history when some of my distinguished ancestors stepped off Phoenician ships onto Egyptian soil and were ushered into Pharaohs court, where in full peacock regalia they presented their feathered credentials. Bible history tells of peacocks constituting some of the valuable imports of King Solomon. So, three thousand years ago, the splendors of Zions royal palace were enhanced by ornamental living peacocks. (1 Ki. 10:22, 23) Centuries later, Alexander of Macedon brought back to Europe two hundred peafowl.
Throughout our history we have always had difficulty in understanding things from the human viewpoint. For example, for millenniums in India we peacocks have been regarded as sacred birds and at times even worshiped. We feature in some of their ancient religious legends. Still today in parts of India it is considered a criminal offense to kill a peacock. Yet the ancient Romans encouraged the use of peafowl as table birds. In medieval Europe a banquet among the wealthy was not complete without a dish of succulent peafowl. You can see, then, how perplexing it has been from a peacocks eye view of things.
Now, before concluding, there is just one common misunderstanding I am concerned about. That expression proud as a peacock has spread the idea that a peacock symbolizes pride and vainglory. How do you think that makes me feel? And is it really true? Do you really think our all wise Creator would implant such undesirable qualities in one of his dumb creations? But then, to fully appreciate the peacocks qualities, one must get a peacocks eye view of things.
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