The common peacock, whose scientific name is Pavo Cristatus, is also known as the Indian peacock or the blue-breasted peacock and is undoubtedly one of the most admired birds by its beauty, since the male peacock, when extending its secondary tail, surprises us with a wide range of multiple bright colors.
Since ancient times the spectacular peacock has been associated with numerous symbolisms and myths that have varied depending on the culture, religion and historical period, which shows that it is an animal that in ancient times aroused a great curiosity.
If you want to discover more about one of the most beautiful birds that exist, in this article on our site we talk about peacock feeding.
Peacock habitat and distribution
The peacock's habitat is of great importance to understand its diet, since both aspects are intimately linked, since the ideal environment for the peacock is one that provides this animal with all those foods that they are a natural part of their diet.
This is a bird native to South Asia that is usually found in humid and dry forests, however, it also adapts to cultivated regions and It can even live around of human populations, as long as water is available in the environment.
Nowadays it is very common to be able to observe it in captivity in different parks, gardens and zoos.
The peacock, an omnivorous animal
Peacock feeding can be defined as an omnivorous feeding, that is, where both animals and plants are ingested, in addition, It is about an animal that generally feeds from the ground, where it finds some of the nutrients it needs.
There are multiple foods that you can eat, but we can highlight the following: fruits, seeds, berries, plants, vegetables, insects, larvae and small reptiles.
Let's see below in a concrete way how the peacock can eat these different foods and cover its nutritional needs.
How does the peacock eat?
Let's see how the peacock can eat the different foods it needs in its natural habitat:
- Insects: The peacock scratches the ground for worms and insects such as ants and larvae. It also eats spiders, although these are not strictly classified within the group of insects.
- Lizards, frogs, slugs and snails: The peacock finds them by breaking the flowers and vegetables where they are hidden to later ingest them, In this case, these foods provide them with a good proportion of protein.
- Semillas: Peacocks can break peppers, tomatoes and a wide variety of fruits in order to ingest the seeds contained in them, however, they rarely eat the pulp.
- Berries: Blackberries, raspberries, currants, blueberries and other berries are loved by peacocks and can be eaten directly of the bushes and trees, in addition, they are passionate about all the insects that are found around the ripe fruit.
Peacock feeding in captivity
When the peacock is in captivity its diet should be as similar as possible to what it would find naturally in its habitat However, this is not always the case and they end up being offered livestock feed, which is rich in concentrated cereals, or pet food, which offers minerals and other additional nutrients.
In addition to the different feeds that can be offered, the diet of the peacock in captivity must always include a wide variety of fruits fresh and dried, as well as various vegetables and cereals.
