Sep 12, 20215 min read

Birds of Paradise

CLASS: Aves (Birds)
ORDER: Passeriformes
FAMILY: Paradisaeidae
GENERA: 16
SPECIES: 42

LIFE SPAN

Up to 30 years in expert care; unknown in the wilderness

YOUNG

Incubation: 14 to 27 days, depending upon the species

Number of eggs: 1 or 2, more is rare

Maturity: Females 1-year-old, males as late as 4 years old, depending upon the species

SIZE

Longest: Black sicklebill at 22 to 25 inches (55 to 63 centimeters)

Shortest: Kingbird of paradise at 6 to 7 inches (16 to 19 centimeters)

Heaviest: Curl-crested manucode at 15.8 ounces (448 grams)

Lightest: Kingbird of paradise at 1.8 ounces (50 grams)

“Birds of paradise glisten like seldom glimpsed denizens of an Asiatic harem, who are clad in gold of many hues and dipped in the purple of dawn.”––Thomas Forrest, The Breadtree Fruit, 1784

Most birds of paradise are found in the upper ranges of the forest canopy.

Birds of paradise outshine other birds with their beautiful plumage and spectacular courtship displays. Their gorgeous colors and fantastical trailing plumes gave rise to incredible stories of their origins and habits, and the Malay phrase for the birds, manuq dewata, translates to birds of the gods. Not all birds within the bird of paradise taxonomic family carry the bird of paradise name; there are also sicklebills, astrapias, paradigallas, riflebirds, parotias, manucodes, and the paradise-crow.

No other bird group is so beautiful or so rich in a variety of plumage and behavior as the birds of paradise. They are usually heavy-billed and rather stout birds, but there are many species, each having its own unique look and colors. Birds of paradise range from the size of a starling to the size of a crow. And that doesn't include the male's feathery tail that can be up to 3 feet (1 meter) long, depending on species!

In plumage, birds of paradise range from black to a painter’s palette of bright colors. Some of the feathers are as delicate as lace, while others shimmer with a metallic golden sheen. Some males have wattles, bright-blue mouths, or colored patches of naked skin. These birds of paradise look like something you could find only in an imaginary land.

Comfortable in the trees, birds of paradise generally stay in the upper ranges of the forest canopy. Some do go a bit lower and may occasionally forage on the forest floor. The birds do like to bathe, using shallow forest ponds or even bird baths! Most female birds of paradise build a cup nest of vines, twigs, leaves, and moss. The small king bird of paradise is unusual in that it nests in a tree cavity.

HABITAT AND DIET

The feeding habits of birds of paradise are not well known, but it is believed that most are fruit eaters. Most birds of paradise eat insects; they have been observed tearing apart dead wood to get to insects. Some have been seen eating seeds, frogs, reptiles, and nestling birds.

FAMILY LIFE

A male Raggiana bird of paradise dances to impress a female. When it comes to making some noise, birds of paradise are not shy! They call to announce their territory, to advertise their location to a potential mate, or to sound an alarm, but with different vocalizations, depending on the species.

The male lowland riflebird has a very sharp call, from which it gets its common name, and the brown sicklebill makes a series of short notes that sound like a machine gun. Emperor birds of paradise hum, while magnificent birds of paradise make clicking noises.

A male Raggiana bird of paradise dances to impress a female.

When it comes to making some noise, birds of paradise are not shy! They call to announce their territory, to advertise their location to a potential mate, or to sound an alarm, but with different vocalizations, depending on the species. The male lowland riflebird has a very sharp call, from which it gets its common name, and the brown sicklebill makes a series of short notes that sound like a machine gun. Emperor birds of paradise hum, while magnificent birds of paradise make clicking noises.

Other ways to communicate include beating

When it comes to courtship, birds of paradise are truly amazing and as varied as their colors. The adult males have plumes, frills, capes, quills, lacy feathers, and or skirts, with tails that may look like expandable fans, whips, twisted wires, and more. Those tails may look beautiful, but they are not very helpful for flight. Instead, they are meant to help the male show off any number of fantastic dance moves to attract as many females as possible and to outdo rivals.

Some dance in trees; others create a stage of sorts on the forest floor by stripping away leaves to let sunlight shine down on them, spotlight fashion. Many males display in a common area known as a lek, where they compete to catch a female's interest. Displays can include charging and then posturing stiffly, hanging from limbs, or alternately freezing and spinning.

now, these are birds performing a mating dance. which one of these do you think is a male? the brown or the black one? let me know in the comments below!!!

Once the male mates with a willing female, he leaves to find yet another female. He takes no part in helping with the nesting or rearing of the young; the female does this job all by herself. Her nest is shaped like a cup and is made of leaves, ferns, twigs, and moss. Nests are often found in tree forks.

FEW UNEXPECTED FACTS

Not all birds of paradise are brightly colored or have fancy feathered "ornaments." And not all males leave the female after breeding. Some, such as manucodes, are less colorful and flamboyant, the males tend to mate with just one female each breeding season, and both parents help with nest building and chick feeding.
Some bird of paradise tops their nests with shed snakeskin. It is thought this might protect the nest from predators
The first record of birds of paradise in European literature was in 1522.
A male Raggiana bird of paradise is on the flag and stamps of Papua New Guinea. The bird is important in social and cultural activities, and its plumes are often used as ceremonial decoration.

Humans have used bird of paradise plumes as symbols of power, wealth, or sexuality for centuries

CONSERVATION

Birds of fashion. Bird of paradise plumes was known and prized in Asia 2,000 years ago. Skins and feathers were very important to European women’s fashion over a century ago and are still used by Indigenous people in New Guinea in their dress and rituals. During the 1880s and 1890s, some birds of paradise were almost wiped out because of the fashion of using the bird's feathers to decorate hats. Up to 50,000 skins were exported each year. This practice was finally stopped in the 1920s when all birds of paradise were protected from export. Today, some hunting is allowed but only to meet the ceremonial needs of the native society.

Once the isolated, mountainous island of New Guinea was a bird's paradise. Few predators other than native humans lived there. But contact with the industrialized world has brought the threat of extinction. Islands, by their physical nature, leave wildlife with nowhere to go when conditions change for the worse. The biggest problem birds of paradise face now come from large lumber companies that clear all trees from rainforests for cardboard and hardwood products.

Currently, the bluebird of paradise Paradisaea rudolphi, Wahnes’s parotia Parotia wahnesi, and MacGregor’s bird of paradise Macgregoria pulchra are vulnerable.