ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY BULLETIN 
with her trunk seeking for some guiding scent. 
And the animal smell of her breath which seeped 
down through the foliage was terrible beyond 
all memories of dangers I have experienced. 
When the last wild elephant is killed or cap- 
tured, the world will be a little less wonderful, 
and when the last elephant dies, room will be 
made for things of less worth.—W. B. 
THE BLUE BIRD OF PARADISE 
By Ler S. Cranpatn 
OURTSHIP displays among birds have 
always attracted the interest of observers. 
Many remarkable habits have been made 
known, some almost passing belief in their 
fantastic extremes. These displays range from 
the noisy strutting of the house sparrow to the 
dignified and ever-wonderful spread of the pea- 
cock. Usually, though not always, they are con- 
fined to the male birds. While in a great many 
species the work of observation has been carried 
out thoroughly, and our knowledge of details is 
extensive, there still is much confusion concern- 
ing the actual causation. Whether it be held 
that these antics are for the purpose of charm- 
ing the prospective bride, or merely as an escape 
for surplus energy, their close connection with 
mating and reproduction seems evident. 
Specialization of plumage, taking the form 
of crests and similar variations, or brilliant 
patches of color, usually have to do with the 
courtship display. Remarkable effects often are 
produced by seemingly uninteresting species, the 
decorative plumage being hidden or obscured 
while the bird is at rest. 
The development of display appendages often 
is very pronounced in certain groups, and 
appears to reach its highest point in the birds 
of paradise. Here every form of the bizarre 
and beautiful appears to have been produced, 
each species seeming to strive to surpass all 
others in aesthetic rivalry. Every degree cf 
specialization is found, from the manucodes, 
with black, crow-like plumage, and only the 
slightly curled feathers of the neck for decora- 
tion, to those forms in which every force of 
evolution seems to have been exerted to produce 
a further marvel of beauty. 
In groups wherein the means for display have 
been so amply provided, it follows that the birds 
themselves are not lacking in ability to use 
them. In antics and attitudes, most of the birds 
of paradise are unexcelled. Only in voice do 
they fail to meet every requirement. Here their 
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apparently close relation to the crows becomes 
evident, for the voices of all of the best known 
species are harsh and strident. 
Unfortunately, all of the birds of paradise 
are very rare in captivity, due in part to the 
inaccessibility of their habitats, and also to 
their lack of stamina in captivity. Increased 
knowledge of their requirements has greatly 
their longevity, but the fact still 
remains that adult males of most species are 
not easily kept for any great period. Probably 
because of the unusually difficult and often 
dangerous character of New Guinea, where most 
of the birds of paradise are found, descriptions 
of the displays of wild birds are noticeably 
meager. 
improved 
Most of our knowledge, therefore, comes from 
observations of captive birds, and in the case 
of Paradisea, the typical genus of the family, 
the facts have been reported in full detail. 
Three of the species of this group have been 
represented in our collection—the lesser bird 
of paradise (P. minor), the greater (P. apoda) 
and Count Raggi’s (P. raggiana). All of these 
birds are provided with the long, brilliantly 
colored side plumes unfortunately so well known 
in millinery commerce. In display, these plumes 
are raised aboye the wings, falling in a wondrous 
double arch toward the back. While thus dis- 
playing, the bird maintains a normal body posi- 
tion, but indulges in a variety of leaps, gestures 
and cries, according to the habit of its species. 
Of this large and varied family, abounding 
in wonders, and with life histories but little 
known, it is not strange that occasionally a 
startling new fact is disclosed. Thus, when a 
new bird of paradise enters a collection, it is 
watched with more than usual interest. 
Among the many fine birds brought to us in 
the autumn of 1920 by Ellis S. Joseph, were 
a pair of Prince Rudolph’s Blue Birds of Para- 
dise (Paradisornis rudolfi). The rarity, beauty 
and value of these birds placed them in the first 
rank among the many fine exhibits of the Zoo- 
logical Park and they were cared for with great 
solicitude. 
The male entered his molt almost simultane- 
ously with his arrival, and as this is the critical 
period with newly imported male birds of para- 
dise, his daily progress was observed with some 
trepidation. However, his constitution evidently 
was fundamentally sound, for the crisis was 
safely passed. As soon as the body feathers 
had been fully renewed, the pair were placed 
in a cage near the other birds of paradise. All 
went well for a few days, when suddenly the 
male attacked his mate and only her prompt 
