Maria's bird-of-paradise
Maria's bird-of-paradise, also known as Frau Reichenow's bird-of-paradise or Mrs. Reichenow's bird-of-paradise, is a bird in the family Paradisaeidae that is a presumptive hybrid species between an emperor bird-of-paradise and raggiana bird-of-paradise. It was named for the wife of the describer, German ornithologist Anton Reichenow.
| Maria's bird-of-paradise | |
|---|---|
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Passeriformes |
| Family: | Paradisaeidae |
| Genus: | Paradisaea |
| Species: | P. maria |
| Binomial name | |
| Paradisaea maria Reichenow, 1894 | |
| Synonyms | |
|
Paradisaea guilielmi × Paradisaea raggiana augustaevictoriae | |
Description
Its measurements are largely intermediate between those of the parent taxa.[1]
History
It was named as a supposed new species in 1894 before being largely accepted as a hybrid in the early 20th century. At least six adult male and one female specimens are known, from Sattelberg and the Finisterre Range of the Huon Peninsula in north-eastern New Guinea. The specimens are held by the American Museum of Natural History in New York and the Berlin Natural History Museum.[1] In 2018, another male specimen was described from the State Natural History Museum, Braunschweig, Germany.[2]
Notes
- Frith & Beehler (1998), p.504.
- Koch, André (2018-05-31). "Discovery of a rare hybrid specimen known as Maria's bird of paradise at the Staatliches Naturhistorisches Museum in Braunschweig". Zoosystematics and Evolution. 94 (2): 315–324. doi:10.3897/zse.94.25139. ISSN 1860-0743.
References
- Frith, Clifford B. & Beehler, Bruce M. (1998). The Birds of Paradise. Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-854853-9.
