Papua is the land of Bird of Paradise

BIRD OF PARADISE: Paradisaeidae
Bird of Paradise (BoP) is 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 satinbirds (now in their own family) and the genus Macgregoria (Giant Wattled Honeyeater). 

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. 

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. 

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. 

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. 

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). 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.