Have you ever thought about Baby Peacocks? We often see adult peacocks showing off their colorful feathers, but baby peacocks, called peachicks, are kept hidden by their mother. These cute and beautiful baby peacocks grow into the majestic peafowl we admire. They grow up in the wild, exploring and learning.
Let’s learn about how these small chicks become the beautiful peacocks we love.
What are Baby Peacocks Called?
Baby peacocks are called peachicks. Male peachicks are baby peacocks, and female peachicks are baby peahens. It is hard to tell the difference between male and female baby peacock for about 5–6 months.
What do Baby Peacocks Look Like?
Peachicks are yellowish to light brown color and blend in with their surroundings that helps them hide which is an evolutionary advantage. Peachicks are not as pretty as their parents, but they are still cute.
They have darker brown streaks on their wings. Some baby peachicks are born all white, like the leucite bred all-white peafowl. Baby peachicks look like gamebirds, like baby pheasants with round heads, open eyes, stocky bodies, and strong legs. Male Baby Peacocks have long legs, with males having slightly longer legs than female baby peacocks.
After 4 weeks, young peafowl start growing their crests. Male baby peacocks also grow tails. Baby Peachicks resemble peahens in two months but are only half the size of adults.
Peahens reach sexual maturity by age 1, while peacocks take 3 years to fully mature and develop their impressive tails. Peacocks are fully mature and have their best tails when they are 5–6 years old.
When do Baby Peacocks get their Color?
Peacocks take several years to grow their colorful tail feathers. Male baby peacocks are bigger, more colorful, and have longer feathers than females. Females are smaller, less colorful, and have shorter feathers.
Juvenile male peachicks take a while to fully develop their adult colors. Male peachicks start to show their colorful feathers when they are around 3 or 5 months old, but it takes them three years to fully develop their tail feathers.
The peacock’s tail is what attracts a mate. After each mating season, a peacock sheds its feathers and grows new ones before the next season. They reach their brightest colors at around six years old.
How Big is a Baby Peacock?
Baby peacocks are about 12cm (about 4.72 inch) long. They are large birds, and peachicks are also quite big, about the same size as a cygnet or gosling.
How Much do Baby Peacocks Weigh?
Baby peacocks, called peachicks, are born weighing 103 grams (3.6 ounces). This is heavier than ducklings and much heavier than pheasant chicks, which weigh around 20g.
The peachick’s weight is more than double that of a duckling and five times higher than a pheasant chick, showing their natural strength.
How do Peacocks Feed their chicks?
Peahens take care of their peachicks by feeding them small bits of food like grubs and worms. They show their peachicks what to eat by pecking at the food. Peahens also talk to their peachicks using different sounds.
Peahens are beautiful and caring mothers. They feed and look after their peachicks carefully. They choose the best and healthiest food for their young.
What does Baby Peacock Eat?
Peachicks, like adult peafowl, are omnivorous and eat both plants and animals. They are not picky eaters. After hatching, they absorb their yolk sack for 24–48 hours and don’t need to eat.
At 3 to 4 days old, they can start looking for food on their own under their mother’s watchful eye. Their mothers feed them soft food until they can eat bigger, harder food. Baby peafowls have strong, sharp beaks that grow fast. They can start eating insects, small animals, and lizards in 2 weeks to a month.
Peachicks need a diet with lots of protein to grow their feathers. Peacock eat vegetables, grains, oats, fruits, insects, and mealworms.
How do Baby Peacocks Learn to Hunt?
Peafowl are foraging birds (find food) and sometimes hunt small animals and insects using their strong feet and sharp beaks. They especially like snakes and lizards. Peachicks closely follow their mother in the early weeks.
Peachicks rely on their mother to teach them how to hunt and find food. This is important because if they don’t learn, they could die in the tough wilderness. Watching these lessons shows how well they communicate and care for each other.
Many peachicks die, showing how important it is for them to learn quickly. It’s a do-or-die situation where those who don’t learn well face danger.
When do Baby Peafowls Leave their Nests?
Baby peacocks, called peachicks, depend on their mother for safety and to learn how to find food. After 4 to 6 months, they become more independent and start exploring on their own. This time is important for them to learn how to find food and move around by themselves. After leaving their mother, peachicks stay nearby until they find mates and move to new areas.
How Fast do Baby Peacocks Grow?
Peacocks usually reach their full size in about a year. However, it takes them about 3 years for their feathers to fully grow. Most peacocks have few tail feathers by the age of 1 year and it takes another 2 years for them to fully mature. The iridescent eyes on their feathers usually develop around the age of 3 or later.
Can Baby Peacocks Fly?
Peafowl have colorful feathers and can fly, but they only fly short distances to reach their nests or escape danger. Peafowl usually doesn’t fly more than one mile.
Baby peacocks quickly learn how to fly. Within one to two weeks after they are born, many peachicks take their first flight under their mother’s supervision. This first flight often happens at night from a low perch to keep the peachicks safe and help them get used to flying.
How Many Baby Peacocks Survive Adulthood?
Peachicks are fragile when they are young. About 2 out of every 6, or 33%, survive to adulthood. The main reasons for their deaths are predators and sickness. Even though adult peacocks are beautiful, their start in life is full of danger and uncertainty. This contrast highlights the struggle for survival in nature.
How Can You Tell the Age of a Peacock?
Peacocks don’t have a specific birthday, but you can tell their age by looking at their feathers. When they are born, baby peacocks look messy. They have soft feathers for the first 1–2 months. By the second month, they have most of their grown-up feathers but not their full colors.
Young peacocks begin to show their colors when they are five months old, and their tails start to grow when they are 1 year old. If a peacock has a small tail, it is probably between 1 and 2 years old.
What to Feed Baby Peacocks in Captivity?
Feeding peachicks in captivity is more challenging than feeding other birds. When kept as pets, they are usually given high-protein gamebird food. Special steps are needed to prevent food contamination and infections. Peachicks need a lot of water because they can easily become dehydrated, just like adult peafowl.
How to Care for a Baby Peacock?
Raising baby peacocks is a fun experience that needs careful attention for the first 8 weeks. Like baby chickens, baby peacocks need a warm and safe place to live. They need fresh water and good food to grow healthily.
FAQs – Cute & Beautiful Baby Peacocks
How Much Does a Baby Peacock Cost?
Baby Peacocks are cheaper than adult peacocks, costing between $50 and $100. Raising Peachicks is usually less expensive than caring for adult peacocks at first. You can buy beautiful baby peacocks for less money, which might be a good choice if you want a friendly pet.
What is a Group of Baby Peacocks Called?
Baby peacocks don’t have a special name for their group. A group of peacocks is called an ostentation, a Pride, or a Muster. These names show how impressive and colorful they are. Peacocks are one of the most beautiful birds in the world.
How Can You Tell if a Baby Peacock is Male or Female?
As a chick grows into a peacock, its physical traits can show what it will become. Male baby peacocks have longer legs and darker feathers on their chests compared to female baby peacocks of the same age. It takes a few months for a young peacock’s tail feathers to grow.
How Long Does It Take for a Peacock to Grow its Tail?
Peacock chicks take a long time to grow their beautiful tails. It takes about three years for the tail to reach adult size, but it grows the most when the bird is 5 to 6 years old.
How to Distinguish Baby Peacock from Baby Pheasant?
Baby peacocks and baby pheasants look alike when they are born. But as they grow feathers, pheasant chicks develop dark markings while peacock chicks stay lighter with fewer streaks on feathers.