Constellations · Constellation · Apodis · Aps
Constellation
Apus
The bird of paradise — a Dutch navigators’ figure, named for a bird Europeans thought had no feet and lived its whole life in the air.
- Genitive
- Apodis
- Area
- 206 square degrees · 67th of 88
- Brightest star
- Paradys · magnitude 3.83
- Naked-eye stars
- 39 brighter than magnitude 6.5
- Highest at midnight
- mid May
History
The first skins brought back from New Guinea had had the feet cut off by traders, and Europeans believed the birds floated forever. Apus means “footless”.