Paradise Riflebird
Encyclopedia
The Paradise Riflebird, Ptiloris paradiseus, is a medium-sized, up to 30 cm long, passerine
bird of the Paradisaeidae (Birds of Paradise) family. The male is black with an iridescent greenish blue crown, throat and central tail feathers. It has a black curved bill
, black feet, dark brown iris
and yellow mouth. The female is an olive brown bird with barred blackish below.
Endemic
to eastern Australia, the Paradise Riflebird is distributed to rainforests of New South Wales
and central Queensland
. The diet consists mainly of insects and fruits.
In displays, the male extends his wings and fans them upward with its head behind the wings to expose his metallic green throat feathers. He then moves his head from side to side with open bill to show off his bright yellow mouth.
The Paradise Riflebird is evaluated as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List
of Threatened Species. It is listed on Appendix II of CITES.
Passerine
A passerine is a bird of the order Passeriformes, which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds or, less accurately, as songbirds, the passerines form one of the most diverse terrestrial vertebrate orders: with over 5,000 identified species, it has roughly...
bird of the Paradisaeidae (Birds of Paradise) family. The male is black with an iridescent greenish blue crown, throat and central tail feathers. It has a black curved bill
Beak
The beak, bill or rostrum is an external anatomical structure of birds which is used for eating and for grooming, manipulating objects, killing prey, fighting, probing for food, courtship and feeding young...
, black feet, dark brown iris
Iris (anatomy)
The iris is a thin, circular structure in the eye, responsible for controlling the diameter and size of the pupils and thus the amount of light reaching the retina. "Eye color" is the color of the iris, which can be green, blue, or brown. In some cases it can be hazel , grey, violet, or even pink...
and yellow mouth. The female is an olive brown bird with barred blackish below.
Endemic
Endemism in birds
An endemic bird area is a region of the world that contains two or more restricted-range species, while a "secondary area" contains one or more restricted-range species. Both terms were devised by Birdlife International....
to eastern Australia, the Paradise Riflebird is distributed to rainforests of New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
and central Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
. The diet consists mainly of insects and fruits.
In displays, the male extends his wings and fans them upward with its head behind the wings to expose his metallic green throat feathers. He then moves his head from side to side with open bill to show off his bright yellow mouth.
The Paradise Riflebird is evaluated as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List
IUCN Red List
The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species , founded in 1963, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biological species. The International Union for Conservation of Nature is the world's main authority on the conservation status of species...
of Threatened Species. It is listed on Appendix II of CITES.