IV Hart dri ei (Oh
I P T E R I B O F H O ì R A A U B E R T l
M'tU^nBro^-. r.
PTERIDOPHORA ALBERTI, Mej^er.
King- of Saxony's Bird of Paradise.
rtcrkhplwra ailerti, Meyer, Bull. Brit. Orn. Club, iv. p. xi (1804).—Id. Aliliandl. k. zool. Mus. Dresden,
1894-i)5, 110. 5, pp. 1-7, Taf. 1 (18!)5).—RoUiscliikl, Bull. Brit. Orn. Club, iv. p. sxi (18!)0).
THIS marvellous 15ii-(L of Paradise docs not require to lie exactly com])iircd willi any otiicr genus of tlie
Paradiseitloe, for it is reccgniziilile from any of llieni at a glance. It is, indeed, distinct from every form
of bird in the world by reason of the two long streamers ou tiie head, with their enamelled and Hag-like
iip])endages.
Dr. A. B. Meyer, in his original account of the species, has given a uole by Dr. Heller on the strnetiirc
of Ihese curious enaniel-like processes, and an epitome of Dr. Heller's observalions will be found in tlie
Introduction to the present work, under the heading of the genns I'tendophuru. The structure of these
eiianiel-like a])|iendages is of the .same class as the ornamental metallic or wax-like structure to be found
in the crowns of the Curl-crested Toucan {Pteroglossus bemhunaisi') and Cuming's liush-Cuckoo
{Lepklogrammiis cmiingi), the hackles of Sonnerat's Jungel-fowl {Gttllus sminenili), the tips to the
secondaries of the IVax-wing (^Jmpelis garrulns), the breast-feathers of the African Open-hill Stork
(^Anaslomtis lamdligenis)^ and other birds.
It will be noticed that the shaft of tlic elongated crest-jilunies is only feathered on one side, and that the
enamel flag-like appendages appear bine ou their outer aspect, and are infernally brown. Each of these
decorative streamers is inserted in a muscular sheath on the side of the head, and we may thus believe that
the bird is able to erect or dejiress them at will.
The home of this wonderful bird is New Guinea, and the first specimens were received from the Aniberno
Mountains, nhich lie to the eastward of Geelvink Bay, in the north-west of the great Papuan island.
/¡(hit male. General colour above velvety black, the feathers ou the mantle and u])per back elongated and
apparently forming a shield ; the lovver back, rump, and upper tail-coverts olive-brown, the latter a little
darker ; les.ser wing-coverts like the back, the median and greater coverts with a shaft-streak of ochrcous
bufT; bastard-wing and primary-coverts black ; quills black, edged with ochreoiis brown, and distinguished
by broad ochreous-buff bases to the feathers, e.Ntending- for some distance up the inner webs; the innermost
secondaries uniform black ; tail black ; head velvety black like the back, with two long streamers on
each side of tile crown, consisting of quadrangular enamelled ¡ilates of blue above, brown belo\v, only found
on one web of the feather; sides of facc and throat velvety black like the crown, the feathers on the
sides of the fore-neck elongated and apparently forming a small shield; remainder of under surface of body
])ale yellow, becoming lighter and more isabclliue on the abdomen and sides of body ; thighs dusky grey;
under wing-coverts and a.\illaries pale ochraceous bull' like the quill-lining. 'I'otal length 8 inclies,
culmcn 0-8, wing 4-85, tail 2-9, tarsus I'S.
The description and figure in the Plate are taken from a sjiecimen from the Amherno River, ¡¡resented to
the British Museum by the Hoji. Walter Rothschild.