Yala is Sri Lanka’s largest National Park and is best known as a good place to spot leopards (although we didn’t see any). We did, however, come across lots of wild peacocks — both male and female– including this male who was putting on quite a show for the ladies. Feather erect and fanned out, he slowly moved in a circle and strutted his stuff!
Peacocks are a type of pheasant, but with distinctive iridescent tail feathers. As you can see from the bottom photos, the feathers make up over half of the male bird’s body length. It is believed females choose their partners according to the size and colors of these feather trains. These birds are blue peacocks, native to India and Sri Lanka.
The term “peacock” is commonly used to refer to birds of both sexes. Technically, only males are peacocks. Females are peahens, and together, they are called peafowl.
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