Bird of paradise mainland. Photo of bird of paradise - breeding birds of paradise

Birds of paradise are not heroes of fairy tales, but the most real animals. These fantastic birds are the closest relatives of our ordinary crows, magpies and sparrows. Their pride and decoration is their bright and unusual plumage, which you will not see on other birds.

There have been various myths and legends surrounding these birds, and the most common of them is that birds of paradise have no legs. And the reason for this was several bird skins that were brought by the Spaniards, in particular one of the captains of Magellan’s expedition, from the Moluccas to Europe in 1522. The skins had no legs. After which rumors began to spread that these birds live their entire lives in the air, feeding on “heavenly dew,” and females hatch eggs on the backs of males during flights.

In fact, these are ordinary birds, albeit damn beautiful ones, which belong to the passerine order. In total, there are about 45 species of these birds and almost all of them live on the Molluk Islands, New Guinea and nearby islands.

Give general characteristics Birds of paradise are a little tricky, as each species has its own characteristics. Generally speaking, most of them have bright plumage, some have dark, metallic tints. The predominant colors are red, blue and yellow. There are feathers for decoration on the tail, head or sides. Most often, males have the most beautiful colors. Only a few species of birds of paradise have females that can boast such beautiful plumage. The tail can be straight or long stepped.

But each species of this bird has its own characteristics appearance. It’s impossible to count them all, so let’s quickly get acquainted with just a few of them. For example, in the six-feathered bird of paradise ( Parotia lawesi) on the head there are 6 thin and long feathers with tassels at the ends. During courtship dances, the male spreads them in front of the female in the form of an umbrella.

Six-feathered bird of paradise
Blue bird of paradise ( Paradisaea rudolphi) boasts an unusual way of demonstrating its beauty during the courtship dance, during which the male, hanging upside down on a branch, spreads his blue feathers.

Another bird of paradise is the ribbon bird ( Astrapia mayeri) is the owner of the longest tail among other species. Its length is 3 times the length of the bird itself.

Birds of paradise had to pay a serious price for their fabulous beauty. In the 19th century, their catching began for the sake of unusual feathers. They were used to decorate ladies' hats and other items. Over several years of German colonization of the northeast of New Guinea, about 50 thousand skins of these birds were exported from this island. Thank God, in the 20th century, hunting them was prohibited, except when they were caught for keeping in large European zoos.

Raggiana Bird of Paradise - Paradisaea raggiana
You can meet these birds only in the thickets of high-mountain forests, where there is plenty of food for them: fruits, insects, lizards, tree frogs, etc.

Usually these birds stay alone. Couples don't meet that often. Some species are monogamous and mate for life. In this case, the male helps his companion in all “nesting” matters. There are also those that attract the female only during the current period. Then she goes alone to build a nest, incubate the eggs and feed the chicks. Males do not take any part in this process.

Birds of paradise are a family of birds that belong to the order Passeriformes. These charming creatures have long been familiar to humanity and have a rich, centuries-old history. Despite this fact, birds of paradise are one of the most secretive species. All the birds were nearly impossible to locate and count for an extremely long period of time.

And this despite many expeditions and studies. Quite recently it became known that in the world There are 45 species of birds of paradise, 38 of which live on the islands of New Guinea. All species became known thanks to the feat of Tim Lehman, who in 2003 organized 18 long excursions in order to identify and photograph absolutely all species of birds of paradise.

A little history

Birds of paradise became known to people back in 1522, thanks to their wonderful skins. They made a splash in the fashion world of that time. The skins were brought to Europe by a team of sailors returning from Magellan. Those skins were gutted and had no limbs. People began to make up stories that the strange birds had no legs and levitated all their lives, laying eggs (supposedly sitting on the back of a flying male) and feeding in the air. Not paying attention to the words of one of the expedition members, who claimed that there were legs after all. The people could no longer be stopped and beautiful legends became firmly entrenched in society.

In 1824, the legend was destroyed by the French doctor Rene Lasson, while traveling to the islands of New Guinea, met a living specimen, deftly jumping on two legs.

Trophy skins imported by sailors became wildly successful. Feathers were used as elements of clothing and decoration. People went crazy from the unprecedented beauty; every girl wanted to have a similar feather in her lady’s hat. During the short period of German colonization, more than fifty thousand bird of paradise skins were exported from the islands.

Nowadays, the destruction of birds of paradise is strictly prohibited. Exceptions to the rule are: hunting birds for the purpose of conducting some kind of research, and making jewelry for the Papuans (first of all, this is a kind of tribute to tradition, and secondly, the number of birds killed by the Papuans is negligible).

Alas, the threat has not passed. Bird feathers have greatly increased in price, and are now a coveted prize for poachers.

General characteristics of appearance

Birds have a powerful beak, which from breed to breed reaches very impressive sizes. Almost all birds have a wide, straight tail. Some species boast a long and stepped version.

The color of members of the family varies widely, from very dark, with a metallic sheen, to bright and colorful individuals. Among the birds of paradise you can find:

• Yellow, with a hint of lemon;
• Red, in combination with black;
• From bright blues to deep onyx and much more.

Males have brighter colors than females. Male individuals can boast of having massive and bright feathers on the head and sides. “Decorating feathers” are displayed during games and mating dances. This is due to widespread sexual dimorphism in some bird species. This difference was also captured in Timothy Lehman's photo report.

Main habitats

This species lives in New Guinea. The adjacent islands are densely populated by various birds of paradise. Most members of the family prefer to live and eat in forests. Birds often inhabit high mountain forests.

Some species live in Australia, in the North and East of the country.

Nutrition

Birds of paradise do not have a very refined taste, so their diet is not very different from that of other birds. Small individuals actively eat all kinds of seeds, small berries, and any other fruits that the bird can handle. Also tiny insects, beetles are used, arachnids. For the most part, large individuals are predators, quite capable of feasting on a small frog or lizard.

Reproduction

As sad as it may be, birds of paradise prefer to live alone. But not everything is so bad, some individuals still find a “life partner” and exist in pairs. The reason for this is the same dimorphism. The more the male and female individuals differ in appearance, the less likely it is that the male will be monogamous.

Some males are ready to help the mother of their chicks. Such birds form pairs and work together. Most species prefer only to fertilize the female. The weaker sex performs further work independently. They build a nest, hatch chicks, feed them, and so on.

Deserves special attention mating games of family members. This action resembles a vibrant festival. Males get together and begin to show themselves to females. Birds try to show all their advantages, spread their wings, “dance.” During this period, entire flocks of graceful “gentlemen” gather on the treetops, trying to win the attention of females. They, in turn, select the most suitable partner for mating.

Sometimes impromptu bird shows are held on the ground. The “performers” find a suitable place and carefully prepare it, clearing it of excess leaves and creating comfortable places for the “spectators”.

IN mating season The behavior of females is also different. One of the species, while a male is flirting with her, spreads its wings and hides his head in them. At this time, the bird looks like an oriental wife, an inhabitant of a harem, hiding her face behind a burqa.

Prominent representatives, their descriptions and photos

Beauty will save the world if the world does not destroy this very beauty... This is exactly what can be said about the birds of paradise, which have almost disappeared from the face of the earth. And they died because they were very beautiful.

Birds of paradise were once found in great abundance on the islands of New Guinea. There was a real paradise for them - constant warmth, plenty of food, practically no enemies. But then the natives settled on the islands and the paradise for the birds of paradise ended. They were caught in very large numbers, killed, gutted and stuffed.

When Europeans first arrived on the islands of New Guinea and saw these stuffed animals, they were simply amazed at the beauty of the birds. But they were very confused by one thing - for some reason all the stuffed birds did not have legs. The natives explained as best they could that these birds had no legs at all. All their lives, from the moment they were born until their death, these cute birds simply flew near the sun and praised its greatness. When the time came to die, the birds simply fell to the ground. According to the natives, such birds do not need legs at all. After all, they don’t go down and walk on the grass. All they do is fly and sing songs day and night.

And the strange thing is that the Europeans believed it. For some trinkets they bought all the stuffed birds from the natives and took them to their ladies. And the ladies, without thinking twice, plucked feathers from the tails of stuffed birds of paradise, stuck them in their hats and came up with a new fashion statement.

All these events took place in the 15th century. However, in the 16th century, naturalists somehow inexplicably came across a stuffed animal of one of the legless birds of paradise. And then it was decided to immediately assemble an expedition, visit New Guinea, and see the legless birds of paradise with my own eyes.

When the first bird of paradise was caught, scientists and biologists of that time were very disappointed - it still had legs. And quite large. And having examined this bird more closely, it turned out that it belonged to the order of passeriformes, and they very much resembled crows... And when they questioned the natives in more detail, it turned out that when making stuffed birds, they specially cut off their legs. Their tradition is like this... It was this tradition that led to the erroneous opinion of the first Europeans who saw the bird of paradise with their own eyes without legs for the very first time.

However, birds of paradise are not the name of any specific bird. This is the name of a genus of birds. And already in this genus several species can be distinguished. These are the greater bird of paradise, goldenian bird of paradise, imperial bird of paradise, lesser bird of paradise, reggian bird of paradise, red bird of paradise and blue bird of paradise.

But why do birds need such beautiful and attractive plumage? But everything is actually quite simple. Only the males are so brightly colored, while the females of the bird of paradise have a very, very modest coloring. And as you know, the more beautiful the male, the more success he has with females. This is what this fabulously beautiful plumage is for.

This whole story about the birds of paradise is very sad. It turns out that even heaven is not as good as we imagine it to be...

The peacock has always attracted attention. Previously, these birds lived only in the western Pacific on islands, as well as in remote parts of Australia. But because of this, no one knew about them and only heard from the stories of sailors. Pioneers from Holland were able to see these beauties for the first time. They immediately gave them a name - birds of paradise. This is the name they still retain in English.

Then, thanks to trade and sea routes, they learned about this beautiful bird in Europe, and there, as they say, it came to America. Today, peacocks live in many countries and on almost all continents. There are many types of them, from blue and white, to the rarest ones the size of a tit.

Forests of India

Most often we come across the usual Indian species with blue plumage and a green tail. Initially, these birds lived only in Sri Lanka and Pakistan. This species of birds of paradise chooses places to live near rural crops, river banks, and forest clearings. Prefers green pastures and grain crops to forage for food. Not shy, but careful.

The remaining species of peacocks known to us prefer denser thickets, for example, they live in the jungle or forests with dense bushes.

Africa, Thailand and more

For example, there is a species called Javanese. This is kind of the same Indian, but with a greenish color of the main plumage. These birds live in countries from Thailand to the island of Java. There is also Congolese, which is found in Africa. Some subtypes of birds of paradise live even near the Himalayas.

Video “White peacock in a park in Prague, Czech Republic”

In this video you will see a white peacock that lives in the Senate Park in Prague.

We find mention of birds of paradise in fairy tales, legends and myths. But do they really exist? As it turns out, this is not fiction. Birds of paradise are as real as all other birds. They inhabit the Australian continent and New Guinea. They, of course, can be classified as exotic, but in fact, their ancestors may well be our crows, which have changed radically in the process of evolution.

The first mention of birds of paradise dates back to 1522. Their stuffed animals were brought to Europe by sailors participating in Magellan's expedition. As a matter of fact, these were not even stuffed animals, but the skins of exotic birds, devoid of bones and legs. The absence of legs did not bother ancient zoologists at all. They believed that birds of paradise live in the sky, feed on heavenly dew, and do not need legs. Even stranger is the hypothesis about their reproduction. Its essence was that birds hatch their eggs while in the air. The female lays them on the male’s back, where she warms them with her body. It is clear that this is utter stupidity.

Scientists reached the truth only in 1824, after they discovered the bird of paradise in New Guinea. She was sitting on a tree and looked the same as her closest European relatives.

From that moment on, the real hunt for exotic birds began. Their feathers were very popular among ladies. In particular, they were used to make decorations for ladies' hats. All this led to a sharp decline in their population. Currently, hunting birds of paradise is prohibited, and they are protected by the state.

Today, decorations made from bird of paradise feathers can only be seen during national holidays. As a rule, they decorate dancers' costumes. They are also available in free trade. However, only wealthy people can purchase them, since they cost incredible amounts of money, up to a million dollars.

What do birds of paradise look like?

They may differ in color, size, and tail shape. It all depends on the type of bird and its habitat. There are single-colored individuals, as well as multi-colored ones, whose plumage can be red, yellow, or blue. Males are much brighter than females. During the mating season, their color becomes incredibly attractive, rich and colorful. It's easy to explain. After all, the more handsome the male, the more chances he has to attract the attention of the female.

Birds of paradise are endemic to New Guinea and nearby islands. Their habitat includes areas of tropical forest. They feed on insects, small amphibians and reptiles, and do not refuse fruits, seeds and berries.

Preference is given to a solitary lifestyle. A male and a female can only be seen together during the mating season. The creation of a married couple is preceded by the patient courtship of the male and his mating dances. Up to 30 males can gather around one female. Each of them is trying to please her. For this purpose, the male takes an original pose. He spreads his plumage and shyly hides his head under his wing.

The mating dance of the male, which he performs right on a tree or on the forest edge, deserves special attention. This is a whole set of original movements and poses, the purpose of which is to demonstrate the beauty of plumage. Before starting to dance, the male carefully prepares the dance floor. He removes it from leaves and branches and tramples it down well. On the branches close to the “stage” the male tears off leaves, preparing places for female spectators. Having achieved the location of the female, the male mates with her. This is where his marital responsibilities end. The female is responsible for building the nest, incubating the eggs and raising the offspring. The male does not take any part in this.