Fauna of New Guinea - Birds

Birds

New Guinea has a rich biodiversity of bird life, with over 79 families and approximately 730 species that can be classified into four groups: breeding land and freshwater species, sea birds, migrants from the north, and migrants and vagrants from Australia and New Zealand. There are eight Endemic Bird Areas with about 320 endemic bird species in New Guinea.

The largest birds in New Guinea are the flightless cassowaries, of which all three species are native to New Guinea. Two of these species: the Southern Cassowary (Casuarius casuarius) and the Northern Cassowary (Casuarius unappendiculatus) reach heights of 1.8 metres (6 ft). The Southern Cassowary is also native to northern Australia. The cassowary is one of the world's most dangerous birds, for it is capable of inflicting fatal injuries with its powerful legs and the dagger-like claw on its inner toe. It is known to have killed humans.

The pigeons and parrots are well represented in New Guinea. They achieve their greatest evolutionary diversity in New Guinea for the island is abundant in fruits and nectar producing plants. The parrots of New Guinea, as with Australia, are very diverse with 46 species, a seventh of the world's total. The forty-five species of pigeons, including the three crowned-pigeons, the largest pigeons in the world, are a sixth of the world's total.

The passerines display the greatest amount of diversity with over 33 families within New Guinea. The passerines of New Guinea are mostly small, often colourful birds which mostly inhabit the forested regions. The best-known family in New Guinea is the Paradisaeidae, one of three families there known collectively as birds of paradise. Many species show extravagant sexual dimorphism. The males can be ornamented with bright, iridescent colours, and modified, ornamental feathers such as tufts and wattles. They also display mating rituals, in which they undergo elaborate movements and calling, to attract females. Some species do not show sexual dimorphism; both male and female can have or lack ornamentation.

Closely related to the birds of paradise are the bowerbirds, a group of twenty rather drab, stocky and short-plumed birds found in New Guinea and Australia. It lacks the bright and iridescence color and ornamental plumes found in the birds of paradise, but it is compromised with male's architectural skill. The male builds and decorates elaborate bower, ranging from mats, stick towers, avenued chambers to tipi-roofed huts and displayed it to the females.

Another odd avifauna from New Guinea is the poisonous birds, notably the Hooded Pitohui. Scientists discovered in 1989 that the feathers and other organs of the pitohui were found to contain batrachotoxin. Since then, several New Guinea's songbirds are found to possess the same toxin as well.

New Guinea's top predator is the New Guinea Harpy Eagle (Harpyopsis novaeguineae). New Guinea shares with the Philippines and New Zealand the distinction of having a bird as top predator.

Most seabirds native to New Guinea are found throughout the tropics.

Although some species are hunted for meat, valuable plumes and feathers, or for the (often illegal) pet trade, the main threats to most species come from logging and conversion of forest for agriculture, both of which degrade or eliminate important habitat.