List of hybrid birds-of-paradise

Last updated June 15, 2024

Hybrid birds of paradise may occur when individuals of different species, that look similar and have overlapping ranges, confuse each other for their own species and crossbreed.

Erwin Stresemann hypothesised that hybridisation among birds-of-paradise might explain why so many of the described species were so rare. Stresemann examinined many controversial specimens and, during the 1920s and 1930s, he published several papers on his hypothesis. Many of the species described in the late 19th and early 20th centuries are now generally considered to be hybrids, though some are still subject to dispute; their status is unlikely to be settled definitely without genetic examination of museum specimens. From a DNA study of these specimens, Thörn et al. (2024) confirmed the majority of the hybrid identities proposed by Stresemann, with none of them representing distinct species.^[1]

Known or presumptive hybrids

Illustration of Duivenbode's riflebird, a presumed hybrid between the magnificent riflebird and lesser lophorina. CraspedophoraKeulemans.jpg — Illustration of Duivenbode's riflebird, a presumed hybrid between the magnificent riflebird and lesser lophorina.

Some named hybrids and presumed hybrids are:^[2]

Astrapian sicklebill ( Astrapia nigra x Epimachus f. fastosus ). Originally described as species Epimachus astrapioides Rothschild, 1897.
Barnes's astrapia ( Astrapia mayeri x A. stephaniae ). Originally described as species Astrarchia barnesi Iredale, 1948.
Bensbach's bird-of-paradise (presumed Lophorina m. magnificus x Paradisaea m. minor ). Originally described as species Janthothorax bensbachi Büttikofer, 1894.
Blood's bird-of-paradise ( Paradisaea raggiana salvadorii x P. rudolphi margaritae ). Originally described as species Paradisaea bloodi Iredale, 1948.
Duivenbode's bird-of-paradise ( Paradisaea guilielmi x P. minor finschi ). Originally described as species Paradisaea duivenbodei Ménégaux, 1913.
Duivenbode's riflebird ( Ptiloris magnificus x Lophorina minor ). Originally described as species Paryphephorus (Craspediphora) duivenbodei Meyer, 1890.
Duivenbode's six-wired bird-of-paradise (presumed Parotia sefilata x Lophorina superba ). Originally described as species Parotia duivenbodei Rothschild, 1900.
Elliot's bird-of-paradise (proposed by Stresemann to be a hybrid of Astrapia nigra x Epimachus f. fastosus , but revealed by DNA analysis to be E. fastosus × Paradigalla carunculata ).^[1] Originally described as species Epimachus ellioti Ward, 1873.
False-lobed astrapia (proposed by Stresemann to be a hybrid of Paradigalla carunculata x Epimachus f. fastosus ), but revealed by DNA analysis to be P. carunculata × Astrapia nigra . Originally described as species Pseudastrapia lobata Rothschild, 1907.
Gilliard's bird-of-paradise ( Paradisaea raggiana salvadorii x P. minor finschi ).
King of Holland's bird-of-paradise ( Cicinnurus magnificus x C. regius ). Originally described as species Diphyllodes gulielmi III Meyer, 1875.
Lupton's bird-of-paradise ( Paradisaea raggiana salvadorii x P. apoda novaeguineae ). Originally described as subspecies Paradisaea apoda luptoni Lowe, 1923.
Lyre-tailed king bird-of-paradise ( Cicinnurus magnificus x C. regius ). Originally described as species Cicinnurus lyogyrus Currie, 1900.
Mantou's riflebird (presumed Lophorina magnificus x Seleucidis melanoleucus ). Originally described as Craspedophora mantoui Oustalet, 1891.
Maria's bird-of-paradise (presumed Paradisaea guilielmi x P. raggiana augustaevictoriae ). Originally described as species Paradisaea maria Reichenow, 1894.
Mysterious bird of Bobairo (presumed Epimachus fastosus atratus x Lophorina superba feminina ).
Rothschild's bird-of-paradise ( Paradisaea raggiana augustaevictoriae x P. minor finschi ). Originally described as species Paradisaea mixta Rothschild, 1921.
Rothschild's lobe-billed bird-of-paradise (presumed Paradigalla carunculata x Lophorina s. superba ). Originally described as species Loborhamphus nobilis Rothschild, 1901.
Ruys's bird-of-paradise ( Cicinnurus m. magnificus x Paradisaea m. minor ). Originally described as species NeoParadisaea ruysi van Oort, 1906.
Schodde's bird-of-paradise ( Paradisornis rudolphi margaritae x Parotia l. lawesii ).
Sharpe's lobe-billed parotia (presumed Parotia sefilata x Paradigalla carunculata ). Originally described as species Loborhamphus ptilorhis Sharpe, 1908.
Stresemann's bird-of-paradise ( Lophorina superba x Parotia carolae ). Originally described as subspecies Lophorina superba pseudoparotia Stresemann, 1934.
Wilhelmina's bird-of-paradise (presumed Lophorina superba x Cicinnurus magnificus ). Originally described as species Lamprothorax wilhelminae Meyer, 1894.
Wonderful bird-of-paradise ( Seleucidis melanoleucus x Paradisaea minor ). Originally described as species Paradisaea mirabilis Reichenow, 1901.

Other possible hybrids

18th century French artist Jacques Barraband, known for his ability to illustrate birds with a high degree of accuracy, produced a few illustrations of unidentified birds-of-paradise. It has been postulated that these paintings may be simply inaccurate, depict undescribed species, or depict hybrids that have not since been observed.^[3]

On 15 May 2004, New Scientist published one of these paintings, which depicts a bird that most closely resembles the twelve-wired bird-of-paradise, although there are several obvious differences.^[3]

Related Research Articles

The birds-of-paradise are members of the family Paradisaeidae of the order Passeriformes. The majority of species are found in eastern Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, and eastern Australia. The family has 45 species in 17 genera. The members of this family are perhaps best known for the plumage of the males of the species, the majority of which are sexually dimorphic. The males of these species tend to have very long, elaborate feathers extending from the beak, wings, tail, or head. For the most part, they are confined to dense rainforest habitats. 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 polygamy.

Adolf Bernhard Meyer was a German anthropologist, ornithologist, entomologist, and herpetologist. He served for nearly thirty years as director of the Königlich Zoologisches und Anthropologisch-Ethnographisches Museum in Dresden. He worked on comparative anatomy and appreciated the ideas of evolution, and influenced many German scientists by translating into German the 1858 papers by Darwin and Wallace which first proposed evolution by natural selection. Influenced by the writings of Wallace with whom he interacted, he travelled to Southeast Asia, and collected specimens and recorded his observations from the region.

The blue bird-of-paradise is a large species of bird-of-paradise. It is the only species in the genus Paradisornis, but was previously included in the genus Paradisaea.

The Arfak astrapia is a species of astrapia, a group of birds found in the birds-of-paradise family Paradiseidae.

The king bird-of-paradise is a passerine bird of the Paradisaeidae (bird-of-paradise) family. It is considered by the IOC checklist to be the only member of the genus Cicinnurus, although the genus Diphyllodes is closely related and is subsumed under Cicinnurus by many other authorities.

The black sicklebill is a large member of the birds of paradise family, Paradisaeidae. This species is found throughout most of central New Guinea and the Vogelkop region to the northwest in montane forests at altitudes from 1,800 to 2,150 m.

Epimachus is a genus of birds-of-paradise (Paradisaeidae) that includes two species, found in the highland forests of New Guinea. They are the largest members of the family. The common name "sicklebill" refers to their long, decurved, sickle-shaped bill.

The magnificent bird-of-paradise is a species of bird-of-paradise. The magnificent bird-of-paradise is evaluated as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. They are listed in Appendix II of CITES.

The greater lophorina, also known as superb bird-of-paradise or greater superb bird-of-paradise, is a species of the Paradisaeidae (bird-of-paradise) family. It was considered the sole species in the genus until in 2017 it was recognised that there were three species.

Carola's parotia, also known as Queen Carola's six-wired bird-of-paradise or Queen Carola's parotia, is a species of bird-of-paradise.

The Huon astrapia, also known as Rothschild's astrapia, Huon bird-of-paradise, or Lord Rothschild's bird-of-paradise, is a species of bird-of-paradise belonging to the genus Astrapia. Like most of its congeners, A. rothschildi is a rather elusive member of its genus and family.

Stephanie's astrapia, also known as Princess Stephanie's astrapia, is a species of bird-of-paradise of the family Paradisaeidae, native to the Bird's Tail Peninsula. This species was first described by Carl Hunstein in 1884.

The paradise riflebird is a passerine bird of the family Paradisaeidae. It is one of four riflebird species in the genus Ptiloris. It is found in subtropical, temperate rainforests in eastern Australia. The species is sexually dimorphic; the male is black with iridescent blue-green patches, while the female is gray-brown and white.

Rothschild's lobe-billed bird-of-paradise, also known as the noble lobe-bill, is one of six enigmatic species of bird-of-paradise collected in Papua New Guinea for zoologist Walter Rothschild, 2nd Baron Rothschild. It is only known from the holotype.

Rothschild's bird-of-paradise is a bird in the family Paradisaeidae that is a hybrid between a raggiana bird-of-paradise and lesser bird-of-paradise. It was named after British ornithologist Walter Rothschild.

Elliot's bird of paradise is a bird in the family Paradisaeidae, first described by Edward Ward in 1873, but which was later proposed to be a hybrid rather than a “real” species, an identity since confirmed by DNA analysis.

Stresemann's bird-of-paradise is a bird in the family Paradisaeidae that is an intergeneric hybrid between a Queen Carola's parotia and greater lophorina.

The crescent-caped lophorina or Vogelkop superb bird-of-paradise, sometimes noted as the curl-caped bird-of-paradise, is a species of the Paradisaeidae (bird-of-paradise) family. It is endemic to the Bird's Head Peninsula in New Guinea. First described in 1930 by Ernst Mayr, it had been treated as a subspecies of the superb bird-of-paradise but was elevated to the status of a full species in 2017, and reinforced in 2018 based on its striking black plumage and behavioral differences, especially visible in the courting male.

References

1 2 Thörn, Filip; Soares, André E. R.; Müller, Ingo A.; Päckert, Martin; Frahnert, Sylke; van Grouw, Hein; Kamminga, Pepijn; Peona, Valentina; Suh, Alexander; Blom, Mozes P. K.; Irestedt, Martin (2024-06-08). "Contemporary intergeneric hybridization and backcrossing among birds-of-paradise". Evolution Letters: 1–15. doi: 10.1093/evlett/qrae023 .
↑ Frith, Clifford B. & Beehler, Bruce M. (1998). The Birds of Paradise: Paradisaeidae. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-854853-2.
1 2 Shuker, Karl (6 April 2011). "Seeking the Lost Birds of Paradise" . Retrieved 7 May 2014.

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[Contemporary_intergeneric_hybridization_and_backcrossing_among_birds-of-paradise-1] 1 2 Thörn, Filip; Soares, André E. R.; Müller, Ingo A.; Päckert, Martin; Frahnert, Sylke; van Grouw, Hein; Kamminga, Pepijn; Peona, Valentina; Suh, Alexander; Blom, Mozes P. K.; Irestedt, Martin (2024-06-08). "Contemporary intergeneric hybridization and backcrossing among birds-of-paradise". Evolution Letters: 1–15. doi: 10.1093/evlett/qrae023 .

[fandb98-2] Frith, Clifford B. & Beehler, Bruce M. (1998). The Birds of Paradise: Paradisaeidae. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-854853-2.

[lostbirdsofparadise-3] 1 2 Shuker, Karl (6 April 2011). "Seeking the Lost Birds of Paradise" . Retrieved 7 May 2014.

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List of hybrid birds-of-paradise

Contents

Known or presumptive hybrids

Other possible hybrids

Related Research Articles

References