ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY BULLETIN 
67 
WATERING TREE OF BIRDS OF PARADISE 
Photographed by Rev. C. H. Dick, Port of Spain, Trinidad, B.WJ. 
parts rising over five hundred feet above sea- 
level, and dense!}' wooded almost throughout. 
In the central depression is the house of the 
caretaker of the island, Mr. Banfield, and near 
by are a number of papaw trees, which have 
been especially planted with the object of pro¬ 
viding abundant fruit for the birds at all times 
of the year. Before these trees were planted, 
the birds of paradise had to depend mainly 
upon such insect life as they could find, and on 
the fruit of the wild gartapple tree which, when 
ripe, splits open into about eight divisions, in¬ 
side of which are deep cavities filled with bright 
red seeds, which the birds pull out with their 
beaks. 
During dry weather there is sometimes a 
serious scarcity of water on the island. As the 
birds live in the tops of the trees and are never 
observed at ground level, such water supply as 
they may obtain, must ordinarily be in the hol¬ 
lows of trees, which might, during certain per¬ 
iods become altogether dried up. The scarcity 
of water may have been the main reason why 
originally the birds after being brought here, 
seemed to diminish seriously in number. Now, 
however, water pots holding about one gallon 
of water each, have been placed about thirty- 
five feet up in three of the most conspicuous 
trees of the island, in the area where the fruit 
trees are most abundant. These water pots are 
refilled about twice a month, by the caretaker, 
from water caught from his roof. Occasionally 
when this is not available, it has to be brought 
from the Tobago mainland.” 
The cock bird of paradise develops its 
plumes in the island between May and Janu¬ 
ary, and after the breeding season these are 
molted. Many of these feathers are found on 
the fallen leaves, especially under the trees in 
which the water pots are placed. Mr. Baker 
found a number, some of which measured seven¬ 
teen inches in length. 
The birds are found in all parts of the jungle, 
from end to end of the island, but are easily- 
seen only from six to eight in the morning and 
again in the afternoon from four to six o’clock. 
They are rarely visible during the heat of the 
day, as at this time they probably seek the 
deeper, cooler recesses of the interior woods. 
As many as fifteen have been observed at one 
time in the top of their favorite trees, and they 
are more readily approached during the period 
of full plumage development. 
Besides the birds of paradise, Little Tobago 
possesses a considerable number of native birds. 
The most conspicuous is the great black cacique 
or giant “yellow-tail,” Ostinops decumanus 
decumanus, which, strangely enough, is rather 
closely related to the birds of paradise them¬ 
selves. The two birds seem friendly and are 
often seen together. At a distance, the Hash 
of yellow from each may momentarily confuse 
the observer. The caciques visit the field of 
corn cultivated by the caretaker, which Paradise 
never does. The sea-birds along the coast never 
interfere witli any of the birds of the interior, 
no attacks from hawks have been noticed, and 
the birds of paradise have never been seen to 
attempt the two-mile crossing to the mainland 
of Tobago. 
Although considerable effort and expense 
have been incurred to find their nests, up to the 
present time neither nest nor egg has been seen, 
and so nothing is known about their breeding 
habits. They are nervous and active, and not 
