#alpha apodis

Apus, which is Greek for "without feet," represents a bird-of-paradise. These birds are found in New Guinea, Australia, and other smaller islands. The reason for the name "Apus" comes from European trading. Native traders removed their wings and feet to hang the rest as decorations. The Europeans, not knowing this, believed that these birds were wingless and legless, kept aloft permanently by their plumage.

The constellation was added by the Dutch astronomer Petrus Plancius in 1598 based on notes from early Dutch explorations of the East Indies. Most illustrations of Apus depict a legless bird!

There are two named stars here:

Paradys (α Apodis) is the brightest star in Apus, an orange giant star about 498 light years away. Its name comes from the original Dutch name for the constellation, Paradys-vogel.