The FOOTLESS BIRD OF PARADISE (_Paradisea apoda_), as it has been called,
to perpetuate the memory of the fables to which we have alluded, is a
species about thirteen inches long. The predominant colour of the plumage
is a beautiful chestnut brown, the forehead a rich black, shaded with
emerald green; the top of the head and upper part of the neck are lemon
coloured, the throat greenish gold, the upper throat violet brown; the
long, feathery plumes at the sides are a brilliant orange, spotted with
purple at their tips, but these soon lose their freshness and beauty when
long exposed to the rays of the sun. The eye is pale yellow, the beak
and feet blueish grey. The colour of the female is brownish grey upon
the upper part of the body, the throat is greyish violet, and the belly
reddish yellow. This bird appears exclusively to inhabit the island of
Aru.