NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Emperor Bird-of-paradise
Paradisaea guilielmi Cabanis, 1888
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
The emperor bird-of-paradise (Paradisaea guilielmi), also known as emperor of Germany's bird-of-paradise, is a species of bird-of-paradise.
The emperor bird-of-paradise is endemic to Papua New Guinea. It is distributed in hill forests of the Huon Peninsula. The diet consists mainly of fruits, figs and arthropods.
The name commemorates the last German Emperor and King of Prussia, Wilhelm II. In January 1888, the emperor bird-of-paradise was the last bird-of-paradise discovered by Carl Hunstein, who also found the blue bird-of-paradise on his journeys. These two species, along with the red bird-of-paradise, are the only Paradisaea that perform inverted display.
Due to ongoing habitat loss, limited range and overhunting in some areas, the emperor bird-of-paradise is evaluated as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. It is listed on Appendix II of CITES.
Wikipedia contributors, Emperor bird-of-paradise; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T08:00:23.699979+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Paradisaea guilielmi Cabanis, 1888
- Name authority
- Cabanis, 1888
- Common name
- Emperor Bird-of-paradise
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Paradisaeidae
- Genus
- Paradisaea
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAves
- orderPasseriformes
- familyParadisaeidae Vigors, 1825
- genusParadisaea Linnaeus, 1758
- speciesParadisaea guilielmi Cabanis, 1888
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Paradisaea. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| Greater Bird-of-paradiseParadisaea apoda Linnaeus, 1758 | ParadisaeidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Goldie's Bird-of-paradiseParadisaea decora Salvin & Godman, 1883 | ParadisaeidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Lesser Bird-of-paradiseParadisaea minor Shaw, 1809 | ParadisaeidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Red Bird-of-paradiseParadisaea rubra Daudin, 1800 | ParadisaeidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
| Raggiana Bird-of-paradiseParadisaea raggiana P. L. Sclater, 1873 | ParadisaeidaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=561809 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:75N9Z. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.