by the B.O.U. Expedition to Dutch Neiv Guinea. 83 



apple-green, as is the case witli several other species of 

 Paradise-Birds. 



Though a well-known species^ we must not omit to 

 mention the splendid Twelve-wired Bird-of-Paradise {Se/eu- 

 cides ni(/er). The plumage of the male is like dark brown 

 plush, shot with bronze-green on the back and deep violet 

 on the wings, while the long dark breast-feathers are edged 

 with rich metallic emerald-green. The long ornamental 

 side-plumes and the rest of the under-parts areof a beautiful 

 bright cinnamon-yellow when freshly moulted^ but this 

 colour is so volatile that it fades to nearly white in skins 

 which have been kept for a few years. The shafts of 

 six of the long side-plumes on either side extend far beyond 

 the vane of the feather and look like twslve recurved wires, 

 hence the bird's popular name. The eye is crimson, the bill 

 black, the gape bright apple-green, and the legs and toes 

 yellowish flesh-colour. 



The Expedition procured three examples of a new form of 

 Parotia or Six-plumed Paradise-Bird on the Iwaka Kiver, 

 but unfortunately did not succeed in shooting a fully adult 

 male. Simultaneously A. S. jNIeek, who was collecting for 

 Mr. Rothschild, procured specimens of the same bird on the 

 Oetakwa River a few miles to the east, but he likewise did 

 not secure the fully adult male. The species has been named 

 Parotia carolce meeki by jNIr. Rothschild ■^. 



The plumage of this bird is like brownish-black plush 

 and equally soft to the touch. The head is ornamented very 

 wonderfully ; on either side behind the eye there are threo 

 long racket-like plumes on long bare shafts (a character 

 common to all the members of this remarakble genus of 

 Paradise-Birds) : the middle of the crown is of a beautiful 

 " old " gold colour in a setting of silvery-white and golden- 

 brown : on the occiput there is a marvellous patch of stiff 

 metal-like feathers, golden- green bordered with deep violet ; 

 the sides of the head before and behind the eye are golden- 



* Ou his second trip Mr. Meek procured adult male examples. Cf. 

 Bull. B. O. C. xxix. p. 118 (1912). 



G 2 



