Why do peacocks lose their feathers

During mating season, the males clump together in territorial groups called leks. Peahens will stroll through the leks, almost as though window-shopping for a new beau. To grab the females' attention, the peacocks will display their full regalia, stepping around excitedly and shaking their plumes. Ornithologists refer to that dating dance as shivering. Charles Darwin had speculated that the number and brilliance of those ocelli determine how successfully peacocks will attract peahens.

Due to this form of sexual selection, he proposed that peacocks gradually evolved with more ornate trains to appeal to peahens. But a study in Japan challenged the long-held belief behind the ornamentation of peacock trains, asserting that the more shake a peacock shows toward a peahen, the greater the likelihood of snagging her. Because of that interaction, the researchers theorized that it is perhaps this movement and mating calls — not the famous ocelli — that influence attraction the most [source: Viegas ].

During a seven-year study of peafowl mating rituals, the researchers found that even the peacocks with the drabber fan and fewer ocelli hooked up as much as the showboats. But going up against Darwin isn't a simple feat. The scientific jury is still out on whether we can dismiss peacock ocelli's role with luring the ladies in. It's a crazy world out there. Stay up to date or go down really fun rabbit holes with our newsletter!

According to Greek mythology, peacocks got their spots thanks to a woman named Io. She was a priestess to Hera , the wife of Zeus. Famous for his wandering eye, Zeus took a fancy to Io and turned her into a heifer in order to disguise her, thus protecting her from the wrath of jealous Hera.

Once she had the heifer in her possession, Hera appointed Argus, a man covered with eyes, to guard Io. Zeus then sent a minion to rescue the priestess, who killed Argus in the process. As a tribute to Argus and his many eyes, Hera bestowed the "eyespot" onto the peacock. But, there is no way to prove it if a peacock is killed for the same.

Therefore, we are working on a policy to regulate this, in which we have to maintain a balance so that innocents do not get caught if they pick up or keep a shed feather. View all Comments Add Comment. Recent Messages. Please rate before posting your Review 1 Trash 1. Characters Remaining: At around six months, the males will begin to change color [ PDF ]. Luckily, the peacocks shed their train every year after mating season, so the feathers can be gathered and sold without the birds coming to any harm.

The average lifespan of a peacock in the wild is about 20 years. Despite these odd proportions, the bird flies just fine, if not very far. This is on the grounds that multi year old peacocks don't shed their tail quills. This implies the multi year old peacock may remain ripe toward the finish of the period when the more seasoned male has lost its tail.

Realities About Peacocks 1. Truth be told, it's difficult to tell the sex of a peachick since they're almost indistinguishable from their moms.

At around a half year, the guys will start to change shading. Fortunately, the peacocks shed their train each year in the wake of mating season, so the quills can be accumulated and sold without the winged creatures going to any mischief. The normal life expectancy of a peacock in the wild is around 20 years. A peacock's tail plumes can reach up to six feet in length and make up around 60 percent of its body length.