Sexing White Peachicks

[bigfoot2]

Currently, we have about 25 white peachicks. 19 of them are from this year's hatch, the rest are two years old. How can we sex them while they are still young without waiting three years to see if they produce a tail?

-Jim
(bigfoot2)

 

[new 2 pfowl]

Hello and

, and in particular, to the Peafowl Department!

Our wonderful member @KsKingBee has a method involving a ridge of feathers on the pea's neck, perhaps he will share some pictures?

 

[Dany12]

1 - DNA test.
2 - males have long head, long legs and long toes.
At two years old the back feathers of young males go to the end of the tail .The females it's clearly distinguishes the back feathers of those of the tail.

 

[KsKingBee]

After about nine months or so the mature feathers start showing a verticle ridge on one or both sides of a hens neck will appear. The two-year-old birds will show it for sure. The reason is that the feathers are different on hens vs cocks. Hens feathers are more like palms and cocks are more hair like so they lay flatter.

Another distinguishing feather is the tail arrangement. The tail feathers support the train and on a cock they make a shape like a spade whereas a hens are arranged in a round shape.

 

[Birdrain92]

Another way to sex White peafowl is the structure of the neck feathers. They have to be about 8 months or older to use this method. KSKingBee describes it very well by saying hens look like palms and males more like hair. Here are some pictures of White peahen vs. White peacock. I'm also adding Indian Blue peacock vs. Indian Blue peahen so you can see the difference easier.
White peahen.

White peacock

Indian Blue peahen

Indian Blue peacock

 

[bigfoot2]

Wow!

I want to thank all of you for the time and effort you put into helping me with distinguishing between males and females of young white peafowl.

This information will save me a lot of time and the eliminate need to build more pens to house them until they are old enough to distinguish by the long tail feathers on the males.

You are really great people to provide me with this much insight.

Thanks again.

Jim (bigfoot2)

 

[allbirds4me]

that's interesting, have always gone by leg length here and longer tail feathers when are a bit over a year old...will look for this in the future !

 

[Midnightman14]

Leg length is one method that's really unreliable. If the birds have bad genes regardless of sex they'll have stumpy legs. I would go with DNA testing if you really don't want to wait.

 

[Helen in the Desert]

Commenting to I can look back on this later...