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Pied Peacocks, Castelo Sao Jorge, Lisbon

 

I've seen hundreds of peacocks in my life—always a treat when you see the males put on those magnificent displays of their blue and green feathers—but it was my first experience with pied, or piebald peacocks.

01 Castelo S Jorge

05 Castelo S Jorge

These birds are typical Indian peacocks, except for the unique patches of white on their bodies.  Each pied bird has a distinctive white pattern admixed with their more typical feathers.  Sometimes these patches are quite large, so that the bird is almost completely white.  Sometimes it's just a minimal white coloration.  Most birds are somewhere in between these extremes.

03 Castelo S Jorge

The coloration is due to a genetic mutation.  It can occur in the wild, but breeders are working hard to produce piebald peacocks for sale as there is a high demand for them.

04 Castelo S Jorge

These birds were spotted at St. George's Castle, high on one of Lisbon's hills.  My wife and I enjoyed the sighting!—

02 Castelo S Jorge (73)

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Images (6)
  • 00 Castelo S Jorge
  • 01 Castelo S Jorge
  • 02 Castelo S Jorge (73)
  • 03 Castelo S Jorge
  • 04 Castelo S Jorge
  • 05 Castelo S Jorge

Twitter: @DrFumblefinger

"We do not take a trip, a trip takes us".  John Steinbeck, from Travels with Charlie

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