“Man-Peafowl Conflict”-An Assessment in the Cultivated Crop lands of Kumbakonam Region of Tamil Nadu, India“Man-Peafowl Conflict”-An Assessment in the Cultivated Crop lands of Kumbakonam Region of Tamil Nadu, India

The Indian Peafowl Pavo cristatus also known as the Blue Peafowl was declared as the National bird of India during 1963 due to its ‘flagship’ value found on its glorious position in mythology and its widespread distribution and grandeur and comes in Schedule-I of the Indian Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972. Many parts of India, the birds can be a nuisance to agriculture as they damage crops. The present study was made in the villages surrounded by Neelathanallur which is situated in the basin of Kollidam river. Line transect method were followed to estimate the population of the Indian Peafowl. The tree species used for roosting by peafowls were recorded and identified. The details of abundance and problems in selected cultivation areas were collected using questionnaire survey method. The study areas mostly dominated with crops cultivation and mainly cultivated by grains and vegetables. A total of 14 visits were made to the study sites of which a total of 50 sightings of peafowls were seen. About 26.25% of the observation shows the peafowls raid mainly on corn or maize plants followed by paddy field (23.11%), chilli (21.85%), cereals & grams (16.14%) respectively. The people living in the study sites does not have much impact due to peafowl. They are not doing any harm to the peafowl because they are worshipping the peacock as vehicle of Lord Subramania.