Greater Bird-of-paradise
Paradisaea apoda
LCLeast Concern Endemic to New Guinea (Indonesia and Papua New Guinea)
- Family
- Birds-of-paradise (Paradisaeidae)
- Order
- Passeriformes
Overview
The greater bird-of-paradise (Paradisaea apoda) is a bird-of-paradise in the genus Paradisaea.
Carl Linnaeus named the species Paradisaea apoda, or "legless bird-of-paradise", because early trade skins to reach Europe were prepared without wings or feet by the indigenous New Guinean people; this led to the misconception that these birds were beautiful visitors from paradise that were kept aloft by their plumes and never touched the earth until death.
Summary from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Range and habitat
Southern New Guinea including Aru Islands.
Range description: AviList Global Avian Checklist.
Countries
Sources and further reading
- Wikipedia: Greater bird-of-paradise
- eBird: sightings, maps and photos
- xeno-canto: sound recordings
- Birds of the World: full species account (subscription)
- BirdLife DataZone: status and threats
- IUCN Red List (threat status)
- AviList global checklist (taxonomy)
Last updated September 29, 2026.
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