The Raggiana bird of paradise is PNG’s national bird and features on the country’s flag, currency and stamps. Birds of paradise are called ‘kumuls’ in Tok Pisin – which is also the nickname of PNG’s national rugby league team. There is a plant called bird of paradise named after the birds that they resemble. The Raggiana, also known as Count Raggi’s bird of paradise, was named after a fairly unknown Italian aristocrat Marquis Francesco Raggi of Genoa (1807–1887), a friend of the Italian explorer and naturalist Luigi D’Albertis who identified the species during an expedition to New Guinea’s west coast in 1873. Not all birds within the bird of paradise family carry the same name; there are also sicklebills, astrapias, paradigallas, riflebirds, parotias, manucodes and the paradise-crow. They also come in a variety of shapes and sizes, from a small starling up to the size of a crow. And that doesn’t include the male’s feathery tail that can be up to 1m long, depending on species!
Because it takes many years to determine male or female in some species, there are many zoos around the world that received shipments of females only to discover as they matured that they were male. Some birds of paradise decorate their nests with discarded snake skins to scare away predators. The ‘paradise’ in the bird’s name stems from a legend that began in the 16th century when traders who sent the first specimens to Europe removed their legs to make them lighter and easier to wear as a headpiece. But this gave rise to the belief that the bird had no feet and, unable to land, must remain perpetually in flight, suspended between heaven and earth, held aloft by their plumes and sustained by manna (food from God). Most male birds of paradise species are not good fathers. Once he mates with a willing female, he leaves to find another female, taking no part in helping with the nesting or rearing of the young; the female does this job all by herself. One of the exceptions is the manucode male, which is
less colourful and flamboyant and tends to mate with just one female each breeding season, and both parents help with nest building and chick feeding. Female birds’ nests are shaped like a cup and made of leaves, ferns, twigs and moss. Nests are often found in tree forks.
During the elaborate courtship, the male’s feathers truly come into their own. Different species have plumes, frills, capes, quills, lacy feathers, and/or skirts, with tails that may look like expandable fans, whips, twisted wires, and more, depending on the species. 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 species 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.
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