We Have Been Adopted!

Normally when Dara says something like: "OMG, there is a giant spider in the tub!", I go into the bathroom to find a normal sized spider, minding its business. So when Dara told me there was a peacock in the driveway, naturally I thought, wild turkey, goose or maybe an obese pheasant. She had a picture, and what do you know; it really looked like a female peahen. But I still had my doubts.

Then I walked outside to take the dog out and what do I see? A large female peahen! This lady is very friendly and seemed to take an interest in our property. So we gave it a little chicken feed and checked it out for a while, then we went on with our day. The next day she was still hanging around, this time on our back deck.  

So what does Dara do? She names it Fergi of course and claims it as part of the homestead. Peafowl are the largest member of the pheasant family. They are closely related to chickens, quail, junglefowl and pheasants. They belong to the family Phasianidae. This particular species is the Indian Peafowl or Pavo cristatus. They are native to South Asia but have been introduced all over the world. People keep them as flock guardians, they are known to chase away hawks and other livestock pests. 

Here she is on top of the house. I think she has been roosting up there at night to avoid predators. Some people who keep peafowl have their wings clipped so they cannot fly. This one can definitely fly, she came down off the roof to greet me this morning. We need to ask around if any of our neighbors keep peafowl. But for now, she is welcome as long as she wants to stay.