Birds that cause genuine admiration. Scaled Bird of Paradise Scaled Bird of Paradise Interesting Facts

Just look at those long head feathers that look so much like festive garlands with flags! It seems that fanfares are about to be heard and some kind of performance will begin. But they didn't guess! It's scaly bird of paradise(lat. Pteridophora alberti) climbed a branch to find her soul mate.

In the mating season, males of this species grow beautiful feathers on each side of the head right above the eyes. Their length can reach half a meter, which is quite a lot for such a crumb: the body length of a scaly bird of paradise is only 22 cm and weighs about 87 g. Females do not have such feathers, and they wear a very modest outfit compared to males.

The scaly bird of paradise lives in New Guinea. Here it inhabits the forests of the foggy belt, located at an altitude of 1500-2900 m above sea level. It feeds on a wide variety of foods: the diet of this small bird includes both insects and fruits.

At the beginning of the breeding season, males show their future partners all the beauty of their plumage. To do this, they sit on tree branches and describe semicircles with their long "antennas". Obviously, females really like this outfit, as they soon begin to show readiness for mating.

A short date - that's all that falls to the share of females from their handsome gentlemen. The males do not take part in the construction of the nest or in the rearing of the offspring. However, this behavior is typical for many members of the family.

The nest of the scaly bird of paradise resembles a wide flat bowl and is attached to the highest branches. Females do an excellent job of protecting and feeding chicks - in this moment the view is not threatened.

Birds of paradise are exotic birds that inhabit New Guinea and Australia. As a rule, these are forest birds, certain types can only be found in high mountain forests.

To date, there are 45 species, 38 of which are found only in New Guinea and small adjacent islands. Birds of paradise are related to the bowerbirds, another family of similar birds.

Birds of paradise feed on seeds, berries, small fruits, insects, small tree frogs, and lizards.

These birds often live alone, rarely in pairs. During the mating dance, males take all sorts of poses and show the females the beauty of their plumage. At this time, 30 males of the same species can gather at the top of one tree at once to demonstrate their beauty. When a bird of paradise of the “legless Salvadoran” species flirts with a female, in order to appear even more beautiful, she raises her golden feathers and hides her head under her wing, after which she becomes very similar to a huge chrysanthemum.

For the most part, birds of paradise “dance” on the trees, but there are also those that arrange real performances on the edge of the forest. After the bird finds a suitable place, it cleans it of fallen leaves and grass, and then tramples down its “stage”. From the branches of trees and bushes, the male cuts off the leaves and makes comfortable places for the "spectators".

Species of birds that do not show sexual dimorphism are monogamous, like most songbirds, and the male assists the female in all her nesting activities. Species with highly developed sexual dimorphism do not form pairs. Male and female meet at lek sites. The construction of the nest, incubation of eggs and feeding of chicks occurs without any participation from the male.

Nests of birds of paradise - voluminous in the form of a deep plate, placed on the branches of trees. Only the royal bird of paradise builds a nest in a hollow. The clutch usually contains 1-2 eggs.

The first skins of birds of paradise made a real sensation in Europe. They were brought to Spain in 1522 by sailors from the only one of the four ships of Magellan who returned to his homeland. The skins were without legs and bones. And, despite the assurances of Pigafetta, the historiographer of this voyage, that the birds of paradise have legs, a legend reigned for centuries: the birds of paradise do not need legs, because from birth to death they seem to live in the air, eating "heavenly dew" . They also breed and incubate chicks on the fly: eggs lie on the back of the male, the female, sitting on top, warms them.
And only in 1824, the French ship's doctor Rene Lesson saw a living bird of paradise in the forests of New Guinea: it had legs and cheerfully jumped along the branches! Birds of paradise were killed by the tens of thousands, their feathers were bought for ladies' hats and other ornaments. In just a few years of German colonization of the northeast of New Guinea, more than 50 thousand skins of birds of paradise were taken from this island.

Now hunting for them is prohibited, except when it is carried out for scientific purposes.

Birds of paradise are an exaggerated proof of Charles Darwin's theory of sexual selection: females choose partners with the most striking, and therefore dominant, traits, thus increasing the likelihood of passing on the corresponding genes to the next generation. There are almost no predators in New Guinea, so magnificent birds thrived and developed eye-catching adornments to a degree that even pedantic and rarely surprised scientists called absurdity.

Great bird of paradise

blue bird of paradise

red bird of paradise

filamentous bird of paradise

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These unusual birds are known for their bright red throat pouch, which only males of the magnificent Frigatebird have during the breeding season. This throat pouch can inflate as Balloon, reflecting the deep black of the rest of the bird's plumage. Female frigatebirds are also black, but with a white breast. The birds also have a long gray beak with a curved edge.

Magnificent frigatebirds live on the coast of Florida and California. They spend most of their time in flight and have a habit of chasing other birds and snatching their food. Frigatebirds mainly feed on small fish, squid and jellyfish.

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The large crest of the male Andean cock-of-the-rock gives it a completely unusual appearance. They have a bright orange head, neck and chest, a black body and gray wings. Unlike males, females have a small crest and a brownish-orange coloration of the upper body. Counts national bird Peru.

They mainly live within the Andes in Peru, Colombia, Ecuador and Bolivia. Andean rock cockerels grow to a length of only 32 cm and weigh up to 230 grams. Their nests have a concave cup-shaped shape; birds use saliva, mud, and plant waste to build them. The main food is fruits, berries, and insects.

You can watch the video with this beautiful bird below:

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The Astrapia is a medium-sized bird found only in the highlands of Papua New Guinea. It is the long tail of the males that makes this species so attractive. In terms of the ratio of the length of the tail feathers to the size of the body, they have the longest tail of any bird in the world.

The length of the tail of astrapias reaches 1 meter, while the body length is only 30 cm. The plumage of these birds is olive green and bronze. Females do not have such a long tail, and males use their tails and bright plumage to attract females. Astrapias females are more inconspicuous and have brownish-black plumage.

You can watch this beautiful bird in the video:

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Elongated scalloped decorative feathers make appearance scaly bird of paradise is very festive and unusual. The length of these head feathers reaches 50 cm. At will, the bird can swing them in different directions. The scaly bird of paradise is found only in New Guinea.

They build their nests on the Kratke Ridge at an altitude of 1400 to 2800 meters above sea level. Competing with other males to attract females, males use not only feathers on their heads, but also loud unusual singing.

Watch the video with this unusual bird below:

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Wonderful birds of paradise, which are known for their bright plumage and mating dances, live only in the forests of New Guinea. Males and females are very different. Males have a bright blue crest, a shirt-front of blue-green feathers on the chest and velvety black on the back. Reddish brown females are not as attractive as males.

In a population of wonderful birds of paradise, females are much smaller than males. Therefore, males have serious competition due to females. To attract them, males display a spectacular mating dance. This courtship occurs by raising the black feathers at the back and the blue-green shield from the front up and moving them symmetrically. In order for the female to choose this particular male, loud singing is also used.

This small unusual bird reaches a length of only 26 cm and weighs from 60 to 100 grams. The wonderful bird of paradise prefers to settle on the sloping mountain ranges of New Guinea at an altitude of 1600 to 2300 meters above sea level.

Magnificent mating dance of this very unusual bird You can see our rating in the video below: