I just happened to come across an article on Facebook saying that India is now classifying peacocks as vermin? Apparently they are the country's national bird. -http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-35563061 I noticed also that they are named peafowl in India. What is the point of the different classification? Will it change laws with the Conservation of Nature and be allowed to be hunted?
Reclassification would mean farmers would be allowed to kill peacocks if they found them damaging their crops. Peacock being the national bird is a protected species right now and cannot be killed or captured for any purpose (with a few exceptions but those require a lot of permissions and are generally given to scientists and other government agencies only). This is my own understanding and I am not always right
Hello there! The peacock is the national bird of India. It also goes by the names mayura or peafowl. In Panaji, in Goa, there were several instances that the peacocks were involved in crop destruction in nearby villages. However, we cannot fault the peacocks for this action. Due to human land expansion, the peacocks habitats are slowly becoming threatened. They venture into fields of the farmers because of the lack of food and natural habitat in their supposed regions. Aside from peacocks, other animals like wild boars, wild monkeys and wild bisons are also being decided to be put into the "vermin" category. Since the peacocks are the national bird of India, they are well protected under the constitution. Hunting and poaching of peacocks aren't allowed. Doing so can result into fines and jail time. Reclassifying them into the "vermin" category can greatly endanger them. This would allow for the killing and hunting of the peacocks. Right now, the peacocks are not in the endangered list of the IUCN. But after this reclassification, we don't know what will happen. Just last year, the coconut trees were reclassified into palms because supposedly it doesn't have branches. The reclassification made the coconut trees or palms unprotected. Because of this, a company distillery called Vani Agro was able to tear down about 500 coconut trees in the Sanguem area. So what would happen to the peacocks once this classification is passed? It's hard not to imagine the worst. For me, instead of listing them as vermin, the government should provide solutions to protect this species. After all, it's not just any bird, it's the national bird of the country. Peacocks can certainly be controlled and maybe if the government can provide the right environment for them, they would not venture out into the human habitats. I hope this helps!
I hope this classification isn't passed. Peacocks are such a beautiful bird and such a big part of the "beauty" and draw to India. This could severely impact not only the peacock population, but have further negative ecological effects. As the above poster mentioned, wild monkeys, boars, and bison are also being considered for the "vermin" classification. Putting such a large number of larger animals on such a list could have a big impact on India.
Only the State of Goa was up in arms against the peacock and wanted it to be classified as vermin. The Government of this State had also included a few other animals in this category particularly those that were responsible for destruction of crops. There was heavy opposition as their displacement was due to the mushrooming of concentre jungles which human beings are responsible for.
