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Male blue bird of paradise performing practice courtship

Blue bird of paradise

Blue birds of paradise are one of the most beautiful of the bird of paradise species. Their bright blue feathers are a welcome addition to the green foliage of the tropical forests of Papua New Guinea. The males are adorned with two long and delicate streaming tail feathers. To impress the females, they show off by hanging upside down from a branch and fanning out their wings - it is a spectacular display.

Scientific name: Paradisaea rudolphi

Rank: Species

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Distribution

Map showing the distribution of the Blue bird of paradise taxa

Species range provided by WWF's Wildfinder.

Habitats

The following habitats are found across the Blue bird of paradise distribution range. Find out more about these environments, what it takes to live there and what else inhabits them.

Rainforest Rainforest
Rainforests are the world's powerhouses, the most vital habitats on the planet. Characterised by high rainfall, they only cover 6% of the Earth across the tropical regions, but they contain more than half of its plant and animal species.

Behaviours

Discover what these behaviours are and how different plants and animals use them.

Additional data source: Animal Diversity Web

Conservation Status

Vulnerable

  1. EX - Extinct
  2. EW
  3. CR - Threatened
  4. EN - Threatened
  5. VU - Threatened
  6. NT
  7. LC - Least concern

Population trend: Decreasing

Year assessed: 2008

Classified by: IUCN 3.1

About

The Blue Bird-of-paradise, (Paradisaea rudolphi), is a medium-sized bird-of-paradise.

Regarded by some ornithologists as the loveliest of all birds, the Blue Bird-of-paradise was discovered by Carl Hunstein in 1884. The scientific name commemorates the ill-fated Crown Prince Rudolf of Austria.

Due to ongoing habitat loss, limited range, small population size and, in some areas, by hunting for its highly prized plumes, the rare Blue Bird-of-paradise is classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. It is listed on Appendix II of CITES.

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