Composite Green Peafowl

Composite:

1. Combining the typical or essential characteristics of individuals making up a group. 
2. To combine (two or more images) to make a single picture. 

The Pavo Muticus peafowl species is comprised of three sub species, Pavo Muticus Muticus (Linnaeus, 1766), Pavo Muticus Spicifer (Shaw, 1804) and Pavo Muticus Imperator (Delacour, 1949).  All three are indigenous to the tropics of Southeast Asia and all three are very beautiful representations but express very different visual characteristics between them. From my observations and experience a large majority of the limited true aka “pure greens” that are found in the USA are composites, meaning they are likely a combination of any of the three sub species. One of the explanations for this is that green peafowl have been imported into the USA for hundreds of years, i.e., if you look at the year the Pavo Muticus Imperator was identified (1949) then you can imagine a world without the internet, social media, etc... thus, there existed a lack of knowledge of these great birds up until the 1990s. These birds were being exported from Southeast Asia via trade routes to the USA and many other places around the world and labeled as Java green peafowl. They were most all considered Javas and many were not separated into their respective categories upon arrival. Fast forward to the present day and with research online you can understand the differences between the sub species but you will find it hard to find the purest forms of the separate subs in the USA. Very few green peafowl have been imported into the USA in modern times and due to the green peafowl being listed as an endangered species even fewer have come directly from Southeast Asia. Many of the imported green peafowl that have been brought into the USA in later years were imported from expert breeders in Europe who they themselves imported from Southeast Asia in the past. That’s not to say they are not pure as most of the birds no doubt are exquisite but the label of import is a dubious term. The composite greens are not hybrids aka “spaldings” rather they are green peafowl in the purest form but are a combination of any of the three sub species and no doubt about it, they are here to stay. The labeling of import green peafowl has taken on a meaning of its own and many consider only the modern day imports as pure birds and in my opinion this is incorrect. The modern day imported greens in the USA can be traced back to their recent origins whereas the composites have no verifiable proof of origin due to the passage of time. The layman would find it difficult to identify a composite and some experts would admit that it can be even more difficult to identify spalding peafowl due to careful breeding programs that have increased the percentage of green genetics over many years, thus there is no true standard in the green peafowl verbiage. There are still a limited amount of original flocks of greens that have been maintained from the early days but they are getting harder to find. 

Here at Bob’s Green Peafowl we have modern day imports and composite greens. The composite flock we own I have personally bred and cared for them for over 30 years and I am well versed in their background and husbandry. They are maintained and bred as a very different and unique flock.

Gerald Barker

25 November 2020