Scholes Edwin, Laman Timothy G
Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, United States of America.
Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, United States of America.
PeerJ. 2018 Apr 16;6:e4621. doi: 10.7717/peerj.4621. eCollection 2018.
The birds-of-paradise (Aves: Paradisaeidae) are a quintessential example of elaborate ornamental diversification among animals. Ornamental evolution in the birds-of-paradise is exemplified by the presence of a highly integrated courtship phenotype, which is the whole package of plumage ornaments, behaviors and sounds that each species uses during courtship. Characterizing a species' courtship phenotype is therefore a key part of evolutionary and taxonomic investigation in the group. With its unprecedented transmogrification from bird-like form into something abstract and otherworldly, the courtship phenotype of the Superb Bird-of-Paradise, is one of the most remarkable of all. Recent research by Irestedt et al. (2017) suggests that the genus is not a single species but is likely a complex of three allopatric species spanning the island of New Guinea: in the Bird's Head Peninsula of the west, throughout the central cordillera and in the Papuan Peninsula of the east. Of these, is the most phenotypically divergent with plumage traits hypothesized to possibly produce differences in ornamental appearance during display. However, the whole courtship phenotype of has not been documented and so the actual extent of differences in ornamental appearance during courtship remain unknown. Here we analyze the first audiovisual recordings of and compare its courtship phenotype with to test the hypothesis of potential differences in ornamental appearance Our main goals are to: (1) provide the first description of the courtship phenotype of in the wild, (2) determine if and how the courtship phenotype differs from and (3) evaluate any uncovered differences in light of newly recognized species status. Our secondary goal is to provide a more thorough characterization of courtship phenotype diversity within the genus to facilitate future comparative study within the genus and family Results show that the courtship phenotype differs substantially from in numerous aspects of ornamental appearance, display behavior and sound. We highlight six key differences and conclude that the new species status of is corroborated by the distinctly differentiated ornamental features documented here With full species status, becomes the fourth endemic bird-of-paradise to the Bird's Head region of Indonesian New Guinea (i.e., the Vogelkop Peninsula), a fact that underscores the importance of this region as a center of endemic biodiversity worthy of enhanced conservation protection.
极乐鸟（鸟纲：极乐鸟科）是动物中精心装饰多样化的典型例子。极乐鸟的装饰进化以高度整合的求偶表型为代表，求偶表型是每个物种在求偶过程中使用的羽毛装饰、行为和声音的整体组合。因此，描述一个物种的求偶表型是该类群进化和分类研究的关键部分。华丽极乐鸟的求偶表型经历了前所未有的从类似鸟类形态到抽象超凡形态的转变，是所有极乐鸟中最引人注目的之一。伊雷斯泰特等人（2017年）最近的研究表明，该属并非单一物种，而是可能由分布于新几内亚岛的三个异域物种组成的复合体：西部鸟头半岛的[物种名1]、中部山脉的[物种名2]以及东部巴布亚半岛的[物种名3]。其中，[物种名1]在表型上差异最大，其羽毛特征据推测可能在展示过程中产生装饰外观上的差异。然而，[物种名1]的整个求偶表型尚未被记录，因此求偶过程中装饰外观的实际差异程度仍然未知。在此，我们分析了[物种名1]的首批视听记录，并将其求偶表型与[物种名2]进行比较，以检验装饰外观存在潜在差异的假设。我们的主要目标是：（1）首次描述野生状态下[物种名1]的求偶表型，（2）确定[物种名1]的求偶表型是否以及如何与[物种名2]不同，（3）根据[物种名1]新认可的物种地位评估任何发现的差异。我们的次要目标是更全面地描述该属内求偶表型的多样性，以便于未来在该属和科内进行比较研究。结果表明，[物种名1]的求偶表型在装饰外观、展示行为和声音的许多方面与[物种名2]有很大不同。我们突出了六个关键差异，并得出结论，这里记录的明显不同的装饰特征证实了[物种名1]的新物种地位。随着完全的物种地位确定，[物种名1]成为印度尼西亚新几内亚鸟头地区（即福格尔科普半岛）的第四种特有极乐鸟，这一事实凸显了该地区作为特有生物多样性中心的重要性，值得加强保护。
