Birds of paradise
From Papua New Guinea and associated islands,
probably late 1800s to early 1900s
Beautiful and mysterious Birds of the
Gods
Europeans first became aware of birds of
paradise in the sixteenth century, after merchants returned from
Indonesia with prepared specimens known as 'trade
skins'. These skins were made to display the birds'
fabulous plumes, and had the feet and wings cut off. As a result
some Europeans thought that the birds did not have feet and spent
their lives floating through the air, drinking dew and never
touching the earth until their death. It was because of this that
they were called birds of paradise. One species was even named
Paradisea apoda, meaning
'the footless bird of
paradise'.
The
extraordinary beauty of these birds combined with the mysteries of
their lifestyle meant that they were sought after by collectors,
who often obtained them through the plume trade. The great
collector Sir Hans Sloane (1660-1753) had a number of specimens in
his own collection.
Although some complete
skins, including the feet and wings, had come to Europe from the
early 1600s, scholars found it difficult to interpret the function
of the males' courtship plumes and the nature of the
birds' displays from only a few specimens. Indeed, these
birds can be so secretive and dificult to observe that the displays
of several species were only filmed for the first time as recently
as 1996. Others are still not well known.
E. Fuller, The Lost Birds of Paradise. (Shrewsbury, Swan Hill Press, 1995)
C.B. Frith & B.M. Beehler, The Birds of Paradise (Oxford University Press, 1998)