Adult Indian Peafowl Male (Pavo Cristatus) Surveying Its Surroundings : (pix Sanjiv Shukla) Royalty-Free Stock Photo

Peacock or Indian peafowl (Pavo cristatus) also known as common peafowl or blue peafowl, is native to the Indian subcontinent. Belonging to the family Phasianidae, it’s the national bird of India. It is brightly colored, with a predominantly blue fan-like crest of spatula-tipped wire-like feathers and is best known for the long train made up of elongated upper-tail covert feathers which bear colorful eye-spots. These stiff feathers are raised into a fan and quivered in a display during courtship. Peahens lack the train, they have a white face and iridescent green lower neck, and dull brown plumage.