King of Saxony – The Bird-of-Paradise

The King of Saxony, or Alberti, has been described in the 1894 bulletin of the British Ornithologist’s Club by Adolf Bernard Meyer of the Dresden Museum. The bird’s name was given in honor of the King of Saxony, Albert of Saxony. Who’s wife gave her name to Queen Carola’s parotia?

The King of Saxony bird-of-paradise is about 22 cm long. It is referred to as “Kiss-a-ba” by the natives of Papua New Guinea and Western New Guinea, as a human interpretation of the male’s loud call. The male bird is black and yellow with a dark brown iris, brownish grey legs, and a black bill with a bright aqua-green gape.

The bird has two long, 50-cm scalloped, enamel-blue brow plumes. Which can be independently erected at the bird’s will. The male’s bird ornamental head plumes are so unusual. When it was the first specimen brought to Europe, it was thought to be a fake. However, the female is greyish brown with barred underparts.

The King of Saxony bird-of-paradise likes to eat mainly fruits, false figs, berries, insects, and arthropods. King-of-Saxony birds-of-paradise communicate with vocalizations, body posture, and movements. The male’s song is a radio-static hiss, simultaneously lasts 4 to 5 seconds. Moreover, male birds court females and perform elaborate movements with their occipital plumes during their songs. And varying posture to better attract the female’s attention.

The King of Saxony bird-of-paradise inhabits the montane forests of New Guinea and is distributed from the Weyland Mountains in Western New Guinea to the Kratke Range in Papua New Guinea. The birds habitually inhabit usually 1500 to 2500 meters above sea level. The adult males are territorial; guard their territory against perches placed on the tops of tall trees. And it sings to compete with males in neighboring territories.

David Attenborough first filmed the bird’s mating ritual in 1996. There’s no known predator for King-of-Saxony birds-of-paradise. However, humans are notorious for hunting them for their exquisite plumage. The role of the role of the bird ecosystem is likely to aid in seed dispersal of the fruits they eat. The adult male birds forage mostly in the upper canopy. But females and males with female plumage have been spotted at all levels of forest growth.

The Male Moulted head-plumes hunted for their highly prized long plumes used by natives for ceremonial decoration. But regardless of this, the species remains fairly common in parts of its range. It is considered to be of least concern on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. The male birds habitually move their occipital plumes while singing.

The King of Saxony bird-of-paradise population has not been quantified but is in large numbers and does not approach the thresholds for being vulnerable under the range size criterion. In spite of facts, the population seems to be decreasing and declining 30% in more than 10 years of three generations.

However, the bird is evaluated as the least concern and reported to be widespread and common. The King of Saxony bird skulls have small depressions behind the occipital cavity to allow for the musculature essential to controlling the occipital plumes. Moreover, The New Guinea people of Wola imitate the courtship displays of P. alberti in their ritualistic dances; and use the occipital plumes in traditional headdresses.

Courtship displays and nesting of Pteridophora Alberti take place between September and April. Only one egg is laid per clutch, and incubation of this single egg appears to last longer than 22 days. Moreover, the age of sexual maturity is also unknown for this species, but sexual maturity usually takes 1 to 2 years for most birds of paradise. 

Also Read: The Hoopoes is Distinctive Crown Feathers Bird

Source: Animal Diversity, Wikipedia, and BirdLife