Famous Peking Opera performer Liu Guijuan shows off a lavish kingfisher feather headdress on Sina Weibo. [Photo/ECNS]

A famous Peking Opera singer was attacked by conservationists after she posted a photo of one of her headdresses which she said is worth 120, 000 yuan ($19,400) online.

Liu Guijuan, also a member of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) in Tianjin, said on Thursday that the headdress was made out of the feathers of 80 kingfishers on her Weibo account.

Her comments immediately drew strong criticism from many conservationists who accused her of torturing animals. Liu later deleted the post.

The headdresses used by Peking Opera singers usually feature feathers which are pulled off live birds because such feathers are of higher quality. Many Weibo users suggested that opera singers use imitation feathers to replace the real ones.