BIRD OF PARADISE: Paradisaeidae
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| Wilson's bird-of-paradise, Image by Sheau Torng Lim |
Bird
of Paradise (BoP) are a principally New Guinean bird family, with 37 of the 41
known species inhabiting the NG Region. The family ranges from Northern
Moluccas through NG and thence south along the coast of Eastern Australia. In
NG, the species inhabit forests at all elevations, but the greatest
concentration of species can be found in the mid-mountain zone, 1500 – 2100 m.
As currently circumscribed, the Paradisaeidae no longer includes the satin birds (now in their own family) and the genus Macgregoria (Giant Wattled Honeyeater).
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| Red bird-of-paradise, Image by Sheau Torng Lim |
Although
the birds of paradise exhibit a diverse array of feeding habits, bill shapes,
body forms, and plumages, they nevertheless constitute a taxonomically compact
group, famous for the males’ remarkable nuptial plumages and elaborate
courtship displays. The bird of paradise body plan is somewhat crowlike, with a
powerful bill and feet, and all species are adapted to a diet of fruit and
insects. This is an important group of seed dispersers.
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| Magnificent bird-of-paradise, Image by Monal |
There
are 2 branches to the family, and they differ in breeding habits. The
Glossy-black Manucodes (5 spp), in which the sexes look alike, are social
monogamous, meaning that the male and female form a pair bond and share in
nesting duties. While they may lack ornamental plumes, manucodes are
nevertheless remarkable as the only songbirds in the world with an elongated
trachea (windpipe), that coils (in Phonygammus) or loops
(Manucodia) beneath the breast skin and, like a trumpet, serves to
amplify the bird’s voice.
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| Vogelkop bird-of-paradise, Image by Monal |
In the polygynous “true” birds of
paradise, the colorful adult males sport ornamental plumage and advertise
themselves with loud songs and calls. The cryptic females are brown or black
plumaged, often with barring ventrally. Young males look exactly like females
but are somewhat larger, and it takes them many years to eventually acquire the
adult plumages. Once fully adult, the male faithfully attends a display court
of perch, where he attracts and mates with females. Depending on species, a
male display by himself away from other males or with a group of males called a
“lek”. Females of polygynous species alone build the nest and rise the
offspring.
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| Western Parotia, bird-of-paradise, Image by Monal |
One outcome of these promiscuous mattings
deserves mention: hybrids – the offspring of parents of different species.
Museum collections contain a supraising diversity of bird of paradise hybrids, including
those between different genera, such as Paradigalla X Astrapia or
Magnificent x King BoP crosses. The hybrids may look intermediate between the
two parental species, but just as often their appearance can be quite
bewildering. Intergeneric hybrids are very rarely encountered in the field. The
only commonly seen hybrids are between Ribbon-tailed and Stephanie’s Astrapias
and between Greater, Lesser, and Raggiana BoPs.
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| Black-billed Sicklebill, Image by Monal |
Birds of Paradise are much admired for
their beauty and their entertaining displays. The birds feature prominently in
local folk traditions, and their plumes are used in dress on festive and
ceremonial occasions. Despite the hunting of adult males for plumes, many birds
of paradise seem able to maintain populations close to rural villages. Whether
near human settlement or in the most remote wilderness, the brown-plumage
females and immature birds predominate by far, so learning to identify them is
key. Be aware that males of many iridescent species appear partly to completely
black depending on light conditions, obscuring what would otherwise be colorful
plumage and possibly confusing someone trying to identify them. For best result
finding and observing male birds of paradise, knowledge of the specific
locationof display courts and perches is required (though not for Manucodes,
which lack a fix display site).
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| Masked Bowerbird, Image by Monal |
Visitors should employ a local guide to show
them display sites. To find displaying males on one’s own, first learn about
the courtship behavior of individual species, then seek out the songs of the
males in appropriate habitat – the advertising males may lead you to their
display site. When not at his display site, a male can sometimes be spotted
resting on an open perch in a tall tree, particularly after rain, so scanning
ridge crests with a telescope is a productive technique. Another method is to
wait patiently at a favored fruiting tree; over time a selection of species may
visit the tree to feed. Even chance encounters are frequent, particularly of
females and immature birds, which are often seen hoping slowly along a branch
carefully searching for prey. Both males and females can be found in mixed
flocks in the lowlands.
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Lesser bird-of-paradise by Sheau Torng Lim
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