BIKDS OF TAKAinSE. 417 



They arc birds of passage, changing tlieir (jiiartcrs according to the mon- 

 soons. Tlie females congregate in troops, asscnihle upon tiie tops of the 

 highest trees of the forests, and all cry together to call the males. These 

 last are always alone in the midst of some fifteen females, which compose 

 their seraglio, after the manner of the gallinaceous birds." 



"Soon after our arrival on this land of jjroniise (Xew Guinea) for the 

 naturalist, I was on a shooting excursion. Scarcely had 1 walked some 

 hundred paces in those ancient forests, when a Dird of Paradise struck my 

 view : it Hew gracefully, and in undulations ; the feathers of its sides formed 

 an elegant and aerial plume, which, without exaggeration, bore no remote 

 resemblance to a brilliant meteor. Surprised, astounded, enjoying an inex- 

 pressible gratification, I devoured this splendid bird with my eyes; but my 

 emotion was so great that I forgot to shoot at it, and did not recollect that 

 I had a gun in my hand till it was far away. 



"The Emerald Bird, when ali\e, is of the size of the common Jay; its 

 feet and beak are bluish, the irides are of a brilliant yellow, its motions 

 are lively and agile, and, in general, it never perches except upon the sum- 

 mit of the most lofty trees. ^\'hen it descends, it is for the pur[)ose of 

 eating the fruits of the lesser trees, or when the sun, in fidl power, fompels 

 it to seek the shade. It has a fancy for certain trees, and makes the neigh- 

 borhood reecho with its piercing voice. This cry indicated to us the move- 

 ments of the birds. Wc were on the watch for them, and it was thus that 

 we came to kill them ; for when a male Bird of Paradise has perched, and 

 hears a rustling in the stillness of the forest, he is silent, and does not move. 

 His call is voikr, voike, voikc, voil-n, strongly articulated. The cry of 

 the female is the same, but she raises it nuich more tecblv. 



"It is at the rising and setting of the sun that the Bird <if Paradise goes 

 to seek its food. In the middle of the day it remains hidden under the 

 ample foliage of the teak tree. It seems to dread the scorching rays of the 

 sun, and to be unwilling to expose itself to the attacks of a rival.'' 



There are a number of species of Birds of Paradise, among which the 

 Incomparable, King Bird, and Superb Bird are tlic most magnificent. 



One of these l)irds, P. upoda, which had been ke[>t in captivity nine 

 years when the account was written, is described by Bennett, in his " ^Yan- 

 derings," as follows : — 



"This eli'gant creature has a light, playfid, and graceful manner, with an 

 arch look ; dances about when a visitor approaches the cage, and seems de- 

 lighted at being made an object of admiration : its notes are very peculiar, 

 resembling the cawing of the raven, but its tones are by fu' more varied. 

 During four months of the year, from May to August, it moults. It washes 

 itself regularly twice a day, and, after having performed its ablutions, throws 

 xc). XI. 53 



