Birds

Peacocks are members of the pheasant family. The word peacock actually refers to the male bird, while females are peahens, and the young are peachicks. As a group they are know as a bevy. The peacock is a wild bird by nature. These eye catching birds like peace and harmony and can be easily stressed.  They are happiest when wandering about freely.  It is the beautiful colors and markings of this bird’s feathers, that people remember most. They also have a crest, or crown, on top their head, making them look even more regal.  Peacocks do not become adult until they are about 3 years old, and it is then the come into their true glory. As an adult, a peacock’s train of feathers can be sixty inches long.

Peewit - lapwing - green plover - these are different names for the same bird. The name "peewit" is descriptive of its call - lapwing is indicative of its broad - ample wings - and green plover denotes the bronze-green colour of its upper parts. A bird of the marshes and the muddy shore - the pastures and ploughed fields - it may be seen throughout the British Isles. It nests on the ground in some rushy pasture or marsh. Worms and larvae are its chief food. In winter it sometimes gathers in huge flocks which career about the sky often in breathtaking manoeuvres.

Pheasant. These medium- to large-sized birds have spurs on their legs. The males are usually extremely colorful, whereas females have dull plumage. Many species have long, ornate tails; their heads often have featherless areas with patches of brightly colored skin and may be ornamented with wattles or saw-toothed combs. Most of these birds are polygamous (a male associated with several females), and the males are not involved in nest building or care of young. Males exhibit an elaborate courtship display. The approximately 175 species of birds in the avian family Phasianidae, order Galliformes, are referred to as pheasants. The term true pheasants is used for the 50 species of 16 genera in the subfamily Phasianinae, which includes peafowl, jungle fowl, and pheasants. Species of true pheasants are native to central and southern Asia (particularly India) and adjacent islands, as well as to west central Africa. For centuries pheasants have been kept in captivity, and the ring-necked, or common, pheasant (Phasianus colchicus), treasured in aviaries of ancient Greece, Rome, and Egypt, has been successfully introduced into Europe, North America, Hawaii, and New Zealand. It eats berries, seeds, and grains and prefers open country with brush cover. Many other pheasants have been kept as ornamentals, among them Lady Amherst's and golden pheasants, Chrysolophus amherstiae and C. pictus, respectively. Some forms, such as Elliot's pheasant, Syrmaticus ellioti, of China, are nearly extinct in their home range.

Puffin or sea parrot. The sea diving bird belonging to the AUK family . Its bill is large and triangular, and brilliantly colored in blue, vermilion, and yellow, and is adapted for carrying a number of fish at one time. Its alternate name is sea parrot. The puffin's body is dumpy, with short legs set far back, small wings, but they are expert swimmers, on land and in flight they are clumsy. Their nests are in rock cavities in the large colonies on the northern islands, where they migrate regularly. The Atlantic puffin migrates as far south as Long Island and the Pacific puffins to California.

Five swallows on a line with double swallow arrow head. This weathervane is long and short. Swallows are approximately 22cm (9 ins.) high. Species of swallow include the purple martin, barn swallow, cliff swallow, bank swallow, tree swallow.

Tawny owl sitting on branch