Birds of paradise. Until roughly last year, I had no idea what they were. Wikipedia says:
“The birds-of-paradise are members of the family Paradisaeidae of the order Passeriformes. The majority of species are found in Papua New Guinea and eastern Australia. The family has 42 species in 15 genera.[1] The members of this family are perhaps best known for the plumage of the males of the species (the majority) which are sexually dimorphic, in particular the very long elaborate feathers extending from the beak, wings, tail or head. For the most part they are confined to dense rainforest habitat. The diet of all species is dominated by fruit and to a lesser extent arthropods. The birds-of-paradise have a variety of breeding systems, ranging from monogamy to lek-type[2] polygamy.”
Not likely ever to see one in person in its native habitat; Papua New Guinea is a place I have no desire to go. But such elaborate feathers and coloring! There are dozens of species; as far as I can tell, no one looks like any other; “sexually dimorphic” in the quotation above means that the females look nothing like the males. You’d never suppose they were the same species.
Truly wonders of nature.
A video of interest:
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