Peacocks, belonging to the Gillaformes order, are close relatives of pheasants, quail, turkey and Guinea fowl. Furthermore, many may ponder the evolutionary significance of how peacocks developed such long and colorful tails. According to Darwin's theory on sexual selection, peacocks developed their intricate tails in order to attract surrounding peafowl and indicate they are a healthy match. Results from various experiments have actually showed that peacocks with the largest tails and more plentiful eyespots have a better chance at survival than those who don't. Finally there is also a downside to having such a large train of feathers to the point where it could come burdensome at times. If a peacocks tail is too big then it could be difficult to move around and could also potentially attract even more predators. But alas, according to Darwin's theory of sexual selection, these peacocks too will die off leaving those with the the perfect sized trains more likely to survive.
Kingdom: Animalia
Pylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Gillaformes
Family: Phasianidae
Genera: Pavo
Species: Cristatus
No comments:
Post a Comment