| This series of picture cards is offered in the interest of education by Brooke Bond | PG Tips | Tropical Birds


	01 BATELEUR EAGLE (Terathopius ecaudatus) This handsome - short - tailed - crested eagle is found in open country over most of Africa south of the Sahara Desert. Though it is reputed to feed on snakes and reptiles - as well as small mammals - it is also a carrion feeder - and probably relies chiefly on dead animals for food as its claws are not sharp. Often it may be observed soaring in circles - watching whatever is afoot below it - and sometimes uttering a deep - jackal - like call. One egg only is laid in a nest composed of sticks - lined with green leaves - placed high in a tree. The length of the adult bird is about 23 inches.
	02 CRESTED HORNBILL (Bycanistes brevis) Also known as Silvery - cheeked Hornbill - this African species is found in the tropical forests from southern Abyssinia to South Rhodesia. The huge bill with its surmounting casque is of hollow cellular construction - and is quite light in weight. Fruit - berries and insects are its food. Like many other hornbills this species nests in the hollow of a tree. While the female is incubating - the entrance hole is cemented up except for a small gap through which the male feeds her . While thus imprisoned she moults wing and tail feathers and grows fat. She does not emerge until the young are ready to fly. Clutch believed to be two white eggs. Length of adult about 30 inches.
	03 LEVAILLANT'S BARBER (Trachyphonus vaillantii) Of the various barbets which inhabit the tropics of both the Old and the New World Levaillant's Barbet is one of the larger species. Its range covers much of Africa southward of the Equator. Mainly a fruit and berry eater - it keeps to the dense cover of trees and usually only its monotonous - nightjar - like churring betrays its presence. In some ways barbets are like woodpeckers in that their toes are arranged two in front and two behind - and also that they excavate holes in trees for their nests in which the white eggs are laid. Length of adult about 9 inches.
	04 SHOEBILL (Balaeniceps Rex) An African grotesque - restricted in its distribution to the White Nile and its tributaries - the Shoebill - or Whaleheaded Stork - is now a rare and secretive bird. It inhabits the papyrus swamps of those regions - and is not often seen in the open unless surprised by a boat as it feeds. Fish are its chief food - and sometimes several birds will combine to drive a shoal into the shallows - their great bills held low on the water surface. The nest is a large mound of water plants or grasses. Its Arabic name - translated - is 'father of a shoe'. When standing erect it is at least 4 1/2 to 5 feet tall.
	05 AFRICAN JACANA (Actophilornis africanus) The jacanas are specially adapted to a life among water plants - their remarkably long toes enabling them to walk on lily leaves and other surface plants with ease. The African Jacana inhabits suitable localities over much of that country southward of the Sahara. It feeds mainly on water insects and small animals - and is a very active bird - running over moss - covered rocks - swimming and diving when necessary - and flies well. For a nest it makes a floating platform of water weeds - and usually lays four eggs - which are remarkable for their high gloss. Adults are about II inches long.
	06 PEACH ORRROSY - FACED LOVEBIRD (Agapornis roseicollis) These charming little parrots live in south - western Africa. They range about in small flocks and feed chiefly on berries and seeds. They are said to do much damage to grain crops where these are planted near their haunts. When building this lovebird has the strange habit of stuffing grass stems and woody fibres under the feathers of its rump - and flying with these to the nest. Sometimes they build their nests into those of the Sociable Weavers or Sparrow Weavers often sharing with the rightful owners. They also use holes and crevices in rocks. 4 to 6 white eggs are laid. Adults are about 6 1/2 inches long.
	07 AFRICAN PIGMY GOOSE (Nettapus auritus) This beautiful little bird of tropical Africa and Madagascar inhabits quiet streams - rivers and small sheets of water where there is plenty of aquatic vegetation. for it feeds on water weed and the seeds of water - lilies. Owing to the shortness of their legs they do not walk easily - but perch readily - and their nests are often made in holes in trees - as well as in cliffs and even anthills. They are usually seen in pairs or small groups. and when disturbed fly low over the water. They dive well if forced to do so - and will remain submerged with the head only above the surface. Male (in front) and female are shown. Length about 13 inches.
	08 PAINTED SNIPE (Rostratula benghalensis benghalensis) A bird of wide distribution - occurring over much of Africa - Arabia - India - Malaya to China. it haunts marshes and swamps - and feeds on worms and insects of the mud. It differs from the true snipe in the following ways - the sexes are not alike; the female is the larger and more handsome of the pair; once the eggs are laid it is mainly the male which incubates them when - it is said - the female leaves and pairs up with another male; the flight is not strong and agile - and when lifting from the ground it trails its legs. The female is depicted. Length about 10 inches.
	09 PURPLE - CRESTED TURACO (Gall/rex porphyreolophus) Among the twenty or so species of Turacos. or Plantain Eaters - which Occur in Africa this is one of the most gorgeous. It is a forest bird feeding solely on fruit. foliage and seeds - and inhabits the country between South Africa and the northern border of Tanganyika. For a nest the merest platform of twigs is made - through which the eggs can be seen from below. The crimson of their wings and the green of their bodies are made of pure pigments unique to some Turacos. The usual clutch is two or three white eggs. Length of adult about 18 inches.
	10 PARADISE WHYDAH (Steganura paradisaea) This species is widespread in tropical Africa from Eritrea to Natal. The male bird is said to be polygamous. The females lay their eggs i? other birds' nests - mainly the Pytllias - and take no part in incubating the eggs. It is only during the breeding season that the male grows his superb - long tail plumage. During the rest of the year he more resembles the female. His length is about 15 inches of which two - thirds are tail.
	11 RED BISHOP BIRD (Euplectes orix) This bright bird. sometimes called Grenadier Weaver. qualifies as a tropical species only in the northernmost part of its range - northern Transvaal and southern Mozambique - for in the main it is a South African bird. At all times it is a flock bird. It feeds on insects as well as grass and - in agricultural areas - is regarded as a pest because of the damage it does to the ripening corn. The nest is constructed of strips of reed blades and grass - is hooded - and the entrance is near the top. It is slung like a cradle between upright reed stems. The males .are brightly coloured only in the breeding season. In winter they are much duller . Length about 5 1/2 inches.
	12 RED - BILLED QUELEA (Quelea quelea) Flocks composed of tens of thousands of these weaver birds are sometimes seen in tropical Africa. Of grain crops they are probably the most destructive bird in the world - an are as dangerous as a swarm of locusts. They nest in vast colonies and have been known to fill every tree in an area of 3000 acres - and it has been estimated that some nest sites may contain as many as ten million nests. These nests are roughly - woven oval structures with an entrance at the side and are built in thorns and other trees. Three colour varieties of males are depicted. Length about 5 inches.
	13 VIOLET - EARED WAX BILL (Granatina granatina) South West .Africa and Angola - Rhodesia - Transvaal and Bechuanaland are the regions where this wax bill lives. It favours dry - thorny scrub land - and is even found in the arid Kalahari Desert. Insects and seeds are its food and it wanders about in pairs or small family parties. The nest is a spherical structure made of dry grass stalks - and the entrance is at the slide. It is built in a thorn bush four to six feet from the ground. Three or four pure white eggs are laid. Length of adult about 5 1/2 inches.
	14 ANGOLAN PITTA (Pitta angolensis) All the pittas are brilliantly coloured - and this tropical African species is no exception. It is found from Uganda southward to the Transvaal. Pittas feed on insects - termites - snails and slugs - and are birds of the forest floor. The nest is a domed structure of twigs and leaves - rather like a retort in shape; the entrance - being the tube of the retort - is placed at the side. It is built in the lower branches of thorny trees. The pitta's call is said to be ventriloquial - and in spite of its jewel - like plumage the bird is difficult to find. Length about 8 inches.
	15 LILAC BREASTED ROLLER (Coractias caudata) These rollers of tropical Africa are aerial acrobats - especially in the breeding season when they roll and twist in the air as part of the courting display. When hunting they perch on high leafless twigs which command a good area of the ground below - and swoop down on ants - butterflies. spiders - centipedes - grasshoppers and the like. The Lilac - breasted Roller is an extremely quarrelsome and aggressive bird - especially during the nesting season when it will attack any intruder. The nest is in a hole in a tree and two or three eggs are laid. Length of adult about 15 inches.
	16 FISH EAGLE (Cuncuma vocifer) Sometimes called' African Sea Eagle' - this eagle may be found by the sides of most large rivers and lakes in Africa south of the Sahara Desert. Some leafless branch of a tall tree is a favoured watching post of this eagle - for it feeds almost entirely on fish - usually fish in shallow water which are easily captured - or even fish already dead or stranded. As its Latin name implies it is a noisy bird - and often attracts attention by its loud yelping call. Its nest is a bulky structure of sticks and branches placed high in a tall tree. and normally two white eggs are laid. Length of adult about 29 inches.
	17 SOUTHERN CARMINE BEE.EATER (Merops nubicoides) This Bee - eater is found in Africa south of the Equator - and. as one would expect - a large part of the food of this species is bees - but other insects are also taken. From its vantage point of a high branch this bird swoops at any passing insect - and is an expert and elegant flying acrobat. It nests in colonies in holes excavated in sandy banks of rivers and escarpments; the tunnels are often many feet long with a nest chamber at the end of sufficient size to allow the bird to turn round. Four or five eggs are laid. Length of adult about 14 inches.
	18 LESSER DOUBLE COLLARED SUNBIRD (Cinnyris chalybeus) An African species ranging from the Equator southward - this sunbird inhabits forests wherever there are flowers - all the year round. As well as - sucking nectar from the blossoms with its long hollow tongue it uses its bill to pierce the base of flowers which cannot be plundered otherwise. Insects - particularly spiders - are also eaten. The nest is usually suspended from the end of a high branch - and is woven of vegetable down - wild cotton and flower heads. Length of adult about 5 inches.
	19 SUN GEM (Heliactin cornuta) The smallest bird in the world is a humming bird - the Bee Humming Bird. The bird depicted is a native of Brazil - and - like all humming birds - is a remarkably dextrous flyer. Some humming birds inhabit and stay in a restricted area; others migrate hundreds of miles. Most are specially adapted for sipping nectar from flowers - although small spiders and insects are also eaten. They have a long tubular tongue which they protrude into the corolla of the flower - while they hover before it on wings beating too fast for the eye to see - except as a blur. Their nests are tiny and either attached to a branch or a leaf. The adult Sun Gem - or Double - crested Humming Bird - is 4 inches long.
	20 ORNATE UMBRELLA BIRD (Cephalopterus ornatus) Umbrella Birds are found in the deep forests of parts of Central and tropical South America. They are shy and secretive and few men have seen them in their wild state. They feed on fruit. The umbrella - like crest is expanded - during the courtship display - to cover the whole top of the head - and the extraordinary pendulous. tubular wattle is expanded and waved while the bird gives vent to a loud. piping note. It makes a nest of twigs high in the tree tops - and two white eggs are laid. Adults are as large as a crow.
	21 TOCO TOUCAN (Ramphastos toco) This toucan frequents high forest trees and its range extends from Guiana to northern Argentina. Toucans are chiefly fruit eaters though they sometimes eat the nestlings of other birds. Their huge bills - though appearing heavy - are very light; the horny shell is very thin - and the interior is a fine network of long fibres arranged to give strength without weight. When at rest toucans place the bill between wing and body - and the tail - by a hinged arrangement - lies along the back. They nest in holes in hollow branches - and two glossy white eggs are laid. The adult is two feet long and of that length the bill accounts for 6 or 7 inches.
	22 RUFUS OR RED.TAILED JACAMAR (Galbula ruficauda) A native of tropical America ranging from Mexico to northern South America. This bird is an expert fly catcher. Sitting huddled on some dead branch near the ground - It darts out at passing insects and rarely misses its prey. While it is at rest It utters a loud piping whistle - which is interrupted when another insect passes - only to be resumed when perching again. Jacamars are birds of open country - the forest edge - or stream bank. They nest in holes in mud banks and lay two white eggs. Length of adult about 8 inches.
	23 SCARLET MACAW (Ara macao) Sometimes known as Red - and - Yellow Macaw - this gorgeous parrot - familiar as a pet - is mainly found in the tropical forests of America - where it moves in flocks through the high trees - feeding on fruit - and filling the forest with harsh calls. They feed during the first hours of daylight; then - after drinking and bathing. they retire to deep shade when the sun is high. In the afternoon they feed again - and before they roost gather in a large tree. They nest in the hollows of trees - and sometimes the nest is betrayed by the protruding tall of the sItting bird. Usually two eggs are laid. Length of adult about 39 inches.
	24 SCARLET COCK OF THE ROCK (Rupicola peruviana) In the deep forests of northern Peru and the upper reaches of the Amazon these flame - coloured creatures have their home. They are fruit eaters. In captivity they appear sluggish - but in the wild they are lively and vivacious - and sometimes indulge in strange dances on the forest floor - in which as many as twenty birds will congregate to watch while one of their number postures and leaps - accompanied by the cries of the watchers. The nest is a cup made of sticks - mud and moss placed on a ledge in a rocky fissure or shallow cave. The females are brown. Two eggs are laid. Adults are about 12 inches long.
	25 BLUEGREY TANAGER (Thraupis episcopus) Also called Blue or Silver - blue Tanager. There are approximately 200 species of tanagers in America - of which this species is one of the best known. It ranges from Mexico to tropical South America. It feeds on fruit and sometimes hunts insects. This beautiful tanager stays with its mate all the year - though it is fond of travelling about in small flocks which also roost together. The male assists the female in nest building though. she incubates the eggs. During this period the male provides her with food - and also helps to feed the nestlings. Adults are about the length of an English starling - but much slimmer.
	26 CUBAN trOGON (Priotelus tetrlnurus) This trogon is confined to Cuba and the Isle of Pines - where it is widespread in the woodlands of the two islands. It feeds on small fruits and berries - and also insects. Both sexes have the same brightly coloured plumage. The skins of trogons are so fragile - and the feathers so weakly attached that they fall out if the bird is handled. It is sluggish in habit - perching without movement - in an uptight position - for long periods. It nests in a cavity of a tree - often using the disused nesting holes of woodpeckers. Three or four white eggs are laid. Length of adult about II inches.
	27 SCAR LEI IBIS (Guara rubra) A tropical American species which - in the past - suffered much from the activities of plume hunters. It is found in the northern parts of South America - and nests in colonies in almost inaccessible river swamps in the interior. Its curved bill is used for probing the water and mud - and for seizing any small moving thing it may touch. The bright red of its plumage is caused by pigment contained in its natural food. The usual nest site is in bushes surrounded by swamps whose waters are infested by the bloodthirsty piranha fish.
	28 WHITE TAILED trOPIC BIRD (Phaethon leptutus) Its other name. Yellow billed Tropic Bird is partly a misnomer - for during the breeding season the adults bills are coral red. This bird is widespread over tropical Atlantic - Pacific and Indian Oceans. It feeds by plunging from a height into the waves to capture fish and squid - etc. - and in the water it swims buoyantly. It nests in small colonies and a single egg is laid on a cliff ledge or cave by the sea. Later - it is said - the parent birds abandon their fledgling on the nesting ledge - and from then on it must fend for itself. Length of adult about 22 inches. .
	29 BLUE HOODED EUPHONIA (Tanagra munica) This small tanager has a range through the American tropics which extends from Hispaniola in the West Indies into South America. It is not a very active species - but whatever It is doing - It incessantly utters its "tuck - tuck" varied occasionally by a plaintive "ee - oo". It is a forest dweller and feeds on mistletoe berries and other small fruit. Its nest is a globular structure with the entrance at the side. It is built in a tree and four spotted eggs are laid Length of adult about 4 inches. .
	30 KING CONDOR (Sarcorhamphus papa) The King Condor or Vulture is a bird of the forests and wooded plains of Central and South America. Like other condors it has amazing eyesight; soaring and circling high in the sky it scrutinises the earth below - and no sick or stricken animal escapes its keen eyes. It seldom kills but when its prey is dead it hurtles down - and its soaring comrades - seeing it dive - descend also. Soon there is little left of the feast but clean - picked bones. It is reputed to build its nest high - often at the very top of a dead tree.
	31 SUN BITTERN (Eurypyga helias) The dim depths of the tropical South and Central American forests are the home of this slim relation of the cranes (it is not a bittern). It is a solitary bird haunting forest pools and streams where it feeds on insects and small fishes. Normally unremarkable in its plumage - it is transformed when it opens its butterfly - like wings and tail to sunbathe or display. The nest is made of sticks. grass and mud. and is placed sometimes on the ground. or in a low bush or tree. Two darkly blotched brown eggs are laid. Length of adult about 20 inches.
	32 ROSY FLAMINGO (Phoenicopterus ruber ruber) This beautiful bird is found in several islands of the West Indies and also in the Galapagos Islands. The strange bill is a very efficient filter when moved about in mud and water. for it retains the vegetable and animal food and allows the mud and water to pour through the sieve. When feeding the upper mandible is the lower. For a nest the bird scrapes a pile of mud together which quickly hardens. It may be 18 inches high. One or sometimes two eggs are laid on this. Flamingoes are flock birds - and nest together. Length about 45 inches.
	33 WHITEFACED WHISLTING DUCK (Dendrocygna Vt.duata) A duck of wide distribution for it is found throughout tropical South America - tropical Africa - Madagascar and the Comoro Islands. Swamps - pools and rivers - salt water lagoons. and estuaries are its haunts. Its food is chiefly vegetable matter - underwater .vegetation and grass - for it is fond of grazing on land. The nest site is usually on the ground among reeds. Outside the breeding season White - faces collect in huge - noisy flocks. They fly and dive well. Length of adult approximately 19 inches.
	34 MAGNIFICENT FRIGATE BIRD (Fregata magnificens) This bird of the American tropical seas has a seven foot wing span - and can remain for hours in the air. It preys on other sea birds - harrying and chasing them till they disgorge food - which is at once caught by the frigate bird before it reaches the water surface. It is said it dare not alight on the water - because it would never be able to rise again. but this must depend on wind force. In the breeding season the males inflate their huge scarlet chest pouches in display. They nest on the tops of bushes - trees or rocks on uninhabited islands. Length of adult about 40 inches.
	35 INDIAN DARTER (Anhinga melanogaster) The darter could be described as a very streamlined cormorant. It is an extremely efficient fisherman - diving with a kink in the neck which enables it to thrust with lightning speed at its prey. They frequent fresh water - rivers - ponds and lakes - in Indo - Malaya - but are not found in salt water. Like cormorants - darters perch with wide - open wings to allow them to dry . They nest in colonies in company with cormorants and herons. constructing rough nests of sticks in clumps of trees. They lay three or four eggs. Length of adult about 36 inches.
	36 FAIRY BLUE BIRD (Irena puella puella) A lively vivacious bird which lives in the forests of southern India and Ceylon - haunting high fruit - bearing trees; often in small flocks. In the midday heat they descend to the streamsides to drink and bathe. They are constantly on the move - and utter a pretty bubbling call every few seconds. Fruit. nectar and insects are their food. The nest is placed in a sapling growing in the deep shade of taller trees; it is a shallow saucer of roots - twigs and grass stems - mixed with mosses. Two eggs are laid. Length of adult about 10 inches.
	37 ORANGE - BELLIED CHLOROPSIS (Chloropsis hardwickii) Also called Hardwicke's Fruit - sucker - this bird is found in the Himalayan foothills - though its range enters the tropics in Burma and the Malay. Peninsula. It is .a forest bird keeping strictly to the tree canopy and feeding on nectar - fruit and insects. In the pursuit of the latter it is an acrobat - clinging to the branches in all manner of positions. Its song is rich and varied - and it. is also a mimic of other birds. The nest is a cradle of fibres and twigs suspended between leaf stalks at the top of a tall tree. Two or three eggs are laid. Length of adult about 7 inches.
	38 INDIAN CRESTED SWIFT. (Hemiprocne longipennis coronata) This swift is distributed over much of India - Ceylon - Burma - Thailand and Indo - China. It is a bird of wooded country where - in small parties - it hunts its insect food with graceful flight. It constantly perches on tree tops - preferring a dead or leafless branch. Its remarkable nest is a shallow half - bowl made of thin flakes of bark and feathers - gummed together by the bird's saliva - and stuck on to the side of a horizontal branch. So small is the nest that the single egg fills it. The sitting bird rests across the branch. which takes her weight when brooding the egg. Length of adult about 9 inches.
	39 CEYLON EMERalD DOVE (Chalcophaps indica robinsoni) The well wooded hills and plains of Ceylon are the home of this beautiful little dove - though its main food consists of seeds which it finds at ground level. It has another name - Ceylon Bronze - wing. It is often seen on the cart tracks of the forest or tea and coffee plantations. Its call is a soft - deep. low "boon" - an unexpected sound from a small dove. The nest - though rather better constructed than most doves' and often well concealed - is a scanty platform of twigs through which the eggs can be seen from below. It is placed in a sapling or in a bamboo clump five to ten feet from the ground. Two eggs are laid. Length of adult about 8 inches.
	40 ORANGE MINIVET (Pericrocotus flammeus) This species of minivet is found in the hill forests of southern India - and in Ceylon. Its food consists entirely of insects which it hunts among the foliage of the tree tops or captured on the wing in the manner of the flycatchers. Out of the breeding season It travels in small flocks - follow - my - leader fashion through the tree tops. The nest is a shallow cup made of fine twigs - roots - and grass stems bound with spiders' webs on the outside - and finished with lichen - moss - and bark fragments. and placed on a bough. Two or three eggs are laid. Length of adult about 9 inches. -
	41 PAINTED BUSH - QUAIL (Cryptoplectron erythrorhynchum) The range of this quail extends through the Central Provinces and the hill ranges of western and southern India. It inhabits dry jungle of grass and brush scrub to fairly dense forest. Seeds and grain are its main food - but insects and white ants are also taken. Coveys of six to ten birds are usual. In the morning and evening they come into the open to feed and dust - bathe on th.e jungle roads and tracks. The nest is a mere hollow in the ground - thinly lined with grasses - and sited under a bush or a rock in long grass. Four to seven eggs are laid. Length of adult about 6 inches.
	42 LOVELY WREN (Malurus amabilis) This elegant sprite inhabits the scrublands of tropical northern Australia. It is very shy and is seldom found away from cover. Either seen in pairs or family parties it is very local and remains in its own territory. Insects and their larvae are its food. The nest is a domed structure made of dried grasses and leaf skeletons mixed with spiders' webs - and lined with fine grasses and fur. The entrance is near the top. The nest site is generally near the ground in the branches of a low bush or in the long grass. The adult is about 4! inches long. 2! inches of which is tail.
	43 java SPARROW (Padda oryzivora) This familiar cage and aviary bird is a native of Java. Sumatra and Malaya. but it has also been introduced into several other countries where - as it is a virile and adaptive species. it has thrived. In the rice. fields it is regarded as a pest - for it is a flock bird and does much damage when it descends on the crops. The peasants trap them in hundreds and sell them. It is also known as 'Rice Bird' and 'Paddy Bird'. The nest is a round structure - woven of grasses - which it places in a tree - or in a suitable recess in masonry. Length of adult about 5 inches.
	44 GOULDIAN FINCH (Poephila gouldiae) Australia has many lovely birds but none more colourful than this small finch of its northern tropical regions. The black - headed form is more common than the red (both depicted) - and there is also a rarer golden - yellow headed phase. Frequenting open country - sometimes far from any water? it feeds chiefly on grass seeds - returning to drink at dusk. The nest is a bottle shaped structure - made of dried grasses - and placed in a variety of sites - grass clump - bush - small tree - or in a hollow branch of a tree. Five to eight eggs are laid. Length of adult about 4 inches.
	45 LEADBEATERS COCKATOO (Kakatoe leadbeateri) The range of this gorgeous cockatoo extends over much of Australia but generally inland - where it favours thickly timbered scrub and arid lands. It is also called Pink Cockatoo and Major Mitchell cockatoo. Much of its time is spent on the ground where it feeds on bulbous roots and the seeds of plants and grasses. Usually it is seen in pairs or small flocks - and when disturbed it takes to wing with a loud screech - soon to alight on the ground again. The nest is placed in a tree hole or in a hollow branch. Length of adult about 18 inches.
	46 RADJAH SHELDUCK (Tadorna radjah rufitergum) This shelduck lives in tropical north and north - east Australia by the sides of rivers and lakes - and feeds on both animal and vegetable matter. In captivity they have been noted patting the ground rapidly with their feet and this action has brought worms to the surface; these were at once eaten and the patting continued. No doubt they do likewise in the wild state. Radjahs often perch in trees and have been seen roosting in them. They nest in holes in trees. and four to eleven eggs are laid. A darker - smaller form of Radjah is found in New Guinea and the Moluccas. Adult about 23 inches in length.
	47 RED SIDED PARROT (Lorius roratus pectoralis) The red bird depicted is the female. and she. in her own way - is just as brightly coloured as the green male - whose sides are red. This particular race is found in New Guinea and nearby islands. Sometimes known as Red - side Eclectus - they feed on nuts - and seeds of tall trees - and - like most parrots - they are noisy - the male giving vent to a long - loud "kurrah". The nest is in a hole in a tall tree - at heights of up to seventy feet from the ground. Two white eggs are laid. Length of adult about 18 inches.
	48 VICTORIA CROWNED PIGEON (Goura victoria) A beautiful - large pigeon which is still found in the forests of northern New Guinea and the islands of Jobi and Biak - though it is becoming rare - and may well become extinct. It is still a source of food for the natives - and is rather tame and stupid - for when one of their number is shot the rest do not flee - but hang about and suffer the same fate. They feed on the forest floor and are easy targets. The Crowned Pigeons - of which the Victoria is a species - are the largest living pigeons. There are three species of Crowned Pigeons in New Guinea and the Pacific Islands - but little has been recorded of their habits.
	49 RED BIRD OF PARADISE (Paradisaea rubra) Waigeu - Batanta and Gemien Islands - to the north - west of New Guinea - are the home of this gorgeous bird. It is active and vigorous - and feeds on fruit and insects found in the tree canopy. At certain seasons the adult males - which are normally shy - flock together in a favoured tree and display their plumes - vibrating them and flying from branch to branch. The natives call these gatherings 'dancing parties' - and it is at this time that the birds are shot for their plumes - and they are steadily decreasing in numbers. Length about 14 inches.
	50 WILSONS BIRD OF PARADISE (Diphyllodes respublica) This is one of the smaller birds of paradise - and is remarkable because of its naked blue crown. It lives in the islands of Waigeu and Batanta to the north - west of New Guinea - and is a bird of the forests. Apart from the knowledge of the shape and colours of the species from obtained specimens - hardly anything is known about its habits - and its secrets await some enthusiastic bird man. Length excluding tail plumes about 7 inches.
	Illustrated and described by C F Tunnicliffe

"I dont know - but my gut says maybe"
---------
[http://Spaghoops.com/squelch/tropical_birds.htm]