Asir Magpie

What the Asir Magpie sounds like

Recorded by Alaa Shalaby · Alarm call · Sabah, Abha, Aseer Province, Saudi Arabia · CC BY-SA 4.0 · via xeno-canto

ID tip

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

When to see the Asir Magpie

One bar for each month. Filled bars are the 2 months with records; pale bars are months with none. The wide bar is February, the month with the most records.

Where to see the Asir Magpie

The map shades 1 country with regular records. Everything unshaded has no records. Countries are listed below the map.

About the Asir Magpie

The Asir magpie, also known as the Arabian magpie, is a highly endangered species of magpie endemic to Saudi Arabia. It is only found in the country's southwestern highlands, in the Asir Mountains. It occurs only in African juniper forest in well-vegetated wadis and valleys. It was originally described as a subspecies of the Eurasian magpie as Pica pica asirensis, and still is by some authorities. This species is highly threatened by habitat destruction, as its native forests are not regenerating. Tourism development and climate change are also posing a threat. Only 135 pairs are known to survive in the wild, and this number is declining.

Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Easily confused with

Black-rumped MagpiePica bottanensisThe black-rumped magpie is black-and-white, with its namesake black rump, brighter plumage, stouter bill, and shorter tail being the main distinctive features from the closely related Oriental and Eurasian magpies. Maghreb MagpiePica mauritanicaThe Maghreb magpie is around 48 cm long, similar in plumage to the widespread Eurasian magpie, but with the distinct patch of vivid blue bare skin behind the eye and on the lower eye lid. Yellow-billed MagpiePica nuttalliiIt is a medium-sized corvid, at 43–54 centimeters (17–21 in) long averaging slightly smaller than the black-billed magpie's 45–60 cm (18–24 in) but overlapping with it.