The Dragon Bird { Green Peafowls

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I have read the whole thread and am Stunned with the amount of information that is being shared here. As with all the Beautiful pictures.

While I don't have Peacocks I can appreciate the whole concern over documenting and classifying in order to perpetuate what is left and understand what we have lost.

One not so simple question. Forgive me I don't know the terminology I can only get a gist of what you are discussing. But once all the Genetics and types are unraveled will it be possible to "deconstruct" or breed back to original lost bloodlines or at least achieve nearly the original breed of Green Peafowls that have been lost.

The reason I ask is this has been started for the Auroch in Europe. Previous wild cattle that roamed in the Forrest were either hunted to extinction or bred with domestic cattle to improve their hardiness. An effort to bring back this wild Species is being made in Italy by crossing individuals with certain traits. The Auroch went extinct in the 1600s. If they are considering this to be achievable think of what this process could do for extinct Peafowl... Or is this already being worked on.

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perchie.girl :

I have read the whole thread and am Stunned with the amount of information that is being shared here. As with all the Beautiful pictures.

While I don't have Peacocks I can appreciate the whole concern over documenting and classifying in order to perpetuate what is left and understand what we have lost.

One not so simple question. Forgive me I don't know the terminology I can only get a gist of what you are discussing. But once all the Genetics and types are unraveled will it be possible to "deconstruct" or breed back to original lost bloodlines or at least achieve nearly the original breed of Green Peafowls that have been lost.

The reason I ask is this has been started for the Auroch in Europe. Previous wild cattle that roamed in the Forrest were either hunted to extinction or bred with domestic cattle to improve their hardiness. An effort to bring back this wild Species is being made in Italy by crossing individuals with certain traits. The Auroch went extinct in the 1600s. If they are considering this to be achievable think of what this process could do for extinct Peafowl... Or is this already being worked on.

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The simple answer is yes. In the event that the green peafowl were to become extinct it would be theoretically possible to reconstruct it.
However, that reconstruction will have lost millions of years of natural selection and unlike the Auroch - the peafowl is predated upon by a wide diversity of predators.
It is impossible to infuse the natural selection back into a composite reconstruction.

As it stands, reintroduction of green peafowl(s) into wildlife protected regions is critical and we must do all we can to reintroduce the most appropriate genetic stock.
Aviculturists must take the conservation of these birds seriously.​
 
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What does this have to do with the topic of Green Peafowl forms? This thread is not about nutrition or husbandry or about me, though you keep trying to make it about me. It's about wild populations of green peafowl. Stick to the subject please. You made a statement regarding different forms of green peafowl being comparable to domestic mutations of swap meet peacocks. I gently pushed back against your misunderstanding and substantiated my assertions with more facts in a non-ambiguous or incendiary manner.

I asked if there was a specific question I could help you with regarding wild forms of Green Peafowl or their natural history. You send this non-starter, once again, insinuating, projecting- drama creation.

I manage zoological collections Deerman and have for nearly twenty years-all around the world- including my own private zoo. Rare and endangered animals deserve to live in complex habitats, vast, well-planted enclosures. I help design those enclosures. I also contribute towards the design of the species action plans for each of these enormous naturalistic enclosures- which species will be kept in these exhibits and how they will be managed, including their nutrition and veterinary care. I'm baffled how this is so difficult for you to comprehend. I've lost count with how many zoos public or private use my nutrition products- but again, this has nothing to do with this thread!

Why is this a greater than lesser than issue with you? Birds photographed in the wild look better than captive ones because they are living as nature intended- they're probably in more ideal light and they are the product of countless generations of natural selection. They only eat what nature intended. The assumption that all these photos of wild birds are altered (not that anyone actually uses adobe photo shop anymore_) to somehow look better than your captive stock is - well it's silly. There's no comparison. How could there be?

You want this to be about my personal collection? This is not about my personal collection. It's about the evolutionary history and diversification of Green Peafowl forms.
This isn't a competition or a beauty pageant. Can we just stay on topic?

I AGREE. Why is it that some individuals feel they need to control every single post under their favorite thread. That's not right. It seems as though they want to bring everyone else down to their level. Resolution, please keep passing along all the wonderful, interesting information on the varieties of peafowl there are in this world. This thread has intrigued me more than any other thread here on BYC. Keep up the good work, you are awesome!
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I commend you and Clinton for your scientific viewpoints on peafowl. I look at my own "dragonbirds" differently now because of this thread.

If you don't have something POSITIVE to add to the thread, please just stay out of it so the rest of us can enjoy it.

Thanks,
Nathan
 
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The simple answer is yes. In the event that the green peafowl were to become extinct it would be theoretically possible to reconstruct it.
However, that reconstruction will have lost millions of years of natural selection and unlike the Auroch - the peafowl is predated upon by a wide diversity of predators.
It is impossible to infuse the natural selection back into a composite reconstruction.

As it stands, reintroduction of green peafowl(s) into wildlife protected regions is critical and we must do all we can to reintroduce the most appropriate genetic stock.
Aviculturists must take the conservation of these birds seriously.

Oh yes it would have to be reintroduced to fine tune the genetics and bring out the natural behavior. Just the same with the Auroch.... in its case will probably never happen. Because along with species evolution or extinction go evolution and or extinction of whole ecosystems. Often times the latter is the case causing the former.. No ecosystem to send them back to. Hopefully the conservation areas are large enough to provide a viable ecosystem.

I continue to love your work and your passion and am a fan. I would love to get the book when it comes out.
 
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In Malaysia muticus muticus became extinct and they reintroduced some other forms like spicifer tanitharyi and javanensis.

In Yunnan, the lack of education has led to the hybridisation of Green and Indian Peafowl. I searched up this documentary of "Xishuangbanna Wildlife" and was horrified to see that the flock of wild birds were hybrid.
http://www.56.com/w27/play_album-aid-1194930_vid-MTUwMDM2ODI.html (note, this takes LONG time to load)
These birds run feral and are called upon by farmers who use these whistles. The females appear to be almost pure while the male is a hybrid.

There is a "peacock garden" where all these birds are mostly Indian Peafowl with mutations and some Green Peafowls.

Given that Yunnan is home to at least 4 different types of Peafowl (forms of annamensis, antiqus, imperator and spicifer), the consequences will be disastrous.

Even the Beijing Zoo, the male looks to be pure while the female is a hybrid.

The most that's being done about Green Peafowl conservation is in Thailand, thanks to people like Fritz. There are also some efforts being done in Cambodia. As for Laos and Vietnam, there isn't as much. It is quite shocking because Delacour once described how Peafowl and Junglefowl were the most common species he saw in Laos.
 
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In Malaysia muticus muticus became extinct and they reintroduced some other forms like spicifer tanitharyi and javanensis.

In Yunnan, the lack of education has led to the hybridisation of Green and Indian Peafowl. I searched up this documentary of "Xishuangbanna Wildlife" and was horrified to see that the flock of wild birds were hybrid.
http://www.56.com/w27/play_album-aid-1194930_vid-MTUwMDM2ODI.html (note, this takes LONG time to load)
These birds run feral and are called upon by farmers who use these whistles.

There is a "peacock garden" where all these birds are mostly Indian Peafowl with mutations and some Green Peafowls.

Given that Yunnan is home to at least 4 different types of Peafowl (forms of annamensis, antiqus, imperator and spicifer), the consequences will be disastrous.

Even the Beijing Zoo, the male looks to be pure while the female is a hybrid.

The most that's being done about Green Peafowl conservation is in Thailand, thanks to people like Fritz. There are also some efforts being done in Cambodia. As for Laos and Vietnam, there isn't as much. It is quite shocking because Delacour once described how Peafowl and Junglefowl were the most common species he saw in Laos.

People wonder why I do not support the breeding of spaldings, one drop of blue blood ruins any chance that the birds be used in conservation.
 
I think perhaps antiquus is the most endangered as they exist in Dequen region of northernmost western Yunnan and are the least related to other green peafowl. They once existed in Sichuan and other prefectures within western Yunnan but appear to be regionally extinct in these places now.

Spaulding bred to Spaulding is not a problem. Registries and pedigrees are lacking. This will only increase the value of the birds and establish names and reputations of selective breeding specialists. Eventually many more people that love people will begin participating in the eradication of hybrids from breeding groups but as there are so many composite green peafowl- hybrids within the different forms of green peafowl that has to be dealt with on the one hand - that stock is still conservation worthy- then the other hybrids that's another.
 
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