Six months ago when they first arrived, the four birds looked bedraggled and had many missing feathers.
The four peafowl had been rescued from a farm and brought to the WRRC by a kind Forest Officer.
Among beautiful hills in south India, Byrakuru Village is part of the town of Mulbagal, the most eastern town in the state of Karnataka. There, the Range Forest Officer of the Karnataka Forest Department came across the four adult peafowl on a farm. They were being kept illegally, eventually to use for meat. In the meantime, their spectacular, beautiful feathers were being plucked out for use in decorations.
The Range Forest Officer drove for a couple of hours to bring them all the way to the WRRC, the Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre, near Bangalore, beside the Bannerghatta Forest.
In India, of course, peafowl are native wild birds – not meant to be kept in captivity or on farms. They ought to be living free, happy lives in the wild. Instead, these four birds arrived greatly in need of some special care and rehabilitation. In the beginning, they could barely fly at all, and, to make matters worse, they’d become habituated to people and were way too tame to be releasable. If they were released before they were ready, they might be captured again by people, or become prey for wild animals.
Fortunately, they were brought to just the right place and they’re in very capable hands. At the WRRC, which is licensed to rehabilitate wildlife, they are given the excellent care that they need to be able to fly free once again.
They have been placed in a large aviary together, where there’s lots of space. With plenty of room for exercise, they’re regaining their strength and growing back their flight feathers. At the same time, being kept away from people will make them shy, elusive and wild again. This is achieved by not interacting with them at all and keeping visitors away.
Every evening, though, they do receive amazing wild visitors — wild peafowl from the adjoining forest drop by to say hello, and they can watch each other, though separated by the enclosure. Naturally, these visits from their wild friends greatly help the peafowl to be wilder and to once again see themselves as wild birds.
They are fed a good, healthy diet – a wide variety of seeds, fruits, vegetables and insects to acclimatize them to the food sources that will be available to them in the forest. Day by day, they are growing less and less dependent on human beings.
After six months at the WRRC, their flight feathers have grown in well, and their flight has greatly improved. However, they are still curious about people and don’t shy away from visitors. Hence, some more rehabilitation time is required. They still have a way to go before they’re wild enough to be released.
But that time will come. Soon, they’ll be back in the wild where they’ll join their new-found friends – once again to fly wild and free and live in the beautiful forest where they belong.
Photos: WRRC
WRRC – The Wildlife Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre,
Bangalore, India
– is licensed to treat and release back to the wild – birds, deer, monkeys, and other orphaned or injured wildlife.
– provides education and greater understanding that benefits forests, wildlife, and wildlife habitat.
How you can help
Click on the donate button and choose WRRC. Another great way to help is to send this link to a friend.
Bless you! Thank you for helping our wild friends!
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