Recently, I went to a zoo. The first animal (bird) I saw was the Peacock. He is allowed to roam freely on the grounds and was toward the entry way. When I first saw him, he was walking back and forth making very loud squawking sounds. Not an attractive sound. If I was his Peacock wife, I would definitely get annoyed!
I was hoping he would open his feathers, but he did not. So, I continued on my viewing journey. Ten minutes later, I heard the Peacock yelling again and banging something. It was really loud. I walked over to see what he was doing.
I found him by the Pepsi Machine. He kept squawking and hitting his beak against the machine. At first, it was funny, it seemed like he was trying to get a soda for himself. Then someone came by and said it was mating season and he sees his reflection in the Pepsi machine. He thinks it is another rival Peacock, so he gets aggressive in wanting to attack him or rather “himself.”
In second photo, he’s resting his beak and getting ready for a “full on attack” of the machine. He did this for over 15 minutes. His beak must have been sore. You can see he is not happy! It takes a lot of energy to fight “yourself.” (A bit of a pun, but you know what I mean.)
Being curious, I did a Google search and found this article on the UK’s “Daily Mirror,” called, “Peacock causes thousands of pounds of damage to cars and shop windows – by attacking its own reflection,” by Andy Jehring, July 27, 2015.
Good article, gives an insight into a Peacock’s personality. They have BIG egos! Reminds me of a few “human guys” I know. (Just kidding… well, sort of!)
I was attacked by a peacock in a mountain resort once. Big time: Bloody claw holes in my arms, beak slashing at my eyes. Had to punch him dead in the face to get him off. It never occurred to me till now that mating season may have been a factor (it was summer). A little after the fact, but thanks!
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Wow… were you dressed in Peacock colors that day? Seriously, why do you think the Peacock attacked you? I am sure that was painfully. OR were you kidding? I know you have a good sense of humor.
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No, not kidding. He was hanging around looking for treats, so I tossed him some Cheerios. He attacked me a bit later while I was carrying a box, so I assumed it was because I surprised him, but your post made me wonder if mating season had something to do with it.
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Either that or he wanted more Cheerios. Well, I feel for you, because I saw how he was attacking the Pepsi Machine. He was definitely out to hurt someone that day! Sorry I brought back a bad memory! GOOD LUCK with your film nomination!
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At first I was like ‘A peacock by the vending machine?’ Then I started reading and it made sense. When we visited St John’s Cathedral in NYC we were surprised to find a peacock on the grounds. When we got home, we read up on them and found out there are three. This peacock reminds me of one of my cats that thought her reflection was another cat. She would hiss at herself.
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You made me laugh about your cat! Now, I will have to read about peacocks in NYC.
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here’s our post about St John. https://jebusmewsandandrea.com/2017/02/06/st-john-the-divine/#more-4823
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Thanks, heading over to take a look.
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