68 



the buyer of this firm how many apodas they had received 

 last year, and he said between three and four hundred. This 

 does not mean that the birds have been less shot than formerly, 

 for they were never so much sought after as they have been in 

 the last few years. It means that the birds are getting scarcer. 



On previous occasions in Dobo I have seen both females and 

 young males among the skins. A Chinese trader in Weigiou, 

 through whose hands most of the rubras pass, once told me that 

 there was a demand for immature birds of that species, as the 

 heads and throats are so beautiful ; and he had a great number 

 of them among his skins which I looked through. Therefore, 

 I am unable to agree with Mr. Pratt that " the birds will thrive 

 because the conditions under which they are killed preserve 

 both the females and the young males." It has been supposed 

 that the males attain their full plumage when four years old, 

 and therefore have probably nested for two or three seasons 

 before then. This is all supposition, and latterly I have had 

 reason for doubting it ; having examined several specimens 

 which, according to their phase of plumage, were at least two 

 years old, but which showed no signs of being in a breeding 

 condition. As a matter of fact, with the exception of the raggiana, 

 the Blue Bird, and the Rifle Bird,we know nothing of the nesting- 

 habits of the Paradise Birds. As these lay only one egg at a time, 

 or at most two, they cannot reproduce very rapidly. 



I have sometimes been told that Paradise plumes are sure 

 to go out of fashion for a time, and this will give the birds a period 

 of rest in which to increase. I am sorry to say we cannot delude 

 ourselves that this will be so. When the price of the skins is 

 low over here, the houses in Ternate, Bonda, and Makassar are 

 every bit as energetic in obtaining the skins, which they keep 

 back until fashion turns again. At these times they have the 

 excuse of low prices to pay the shooters less, and as the latter 

 are always kept in their employers' debt, they are forced to go 

 out as usual. 



Paradisea jobiensis (not " paradisornis ") may only be an 

 island form of P. minor, but it is far more beautiful, having the 



