About the Oriental Dollarbird
The Oriental dollarbird is a bird of the roller family, so named because of the distinctive pale blue or white, coin-shaped spots on its wings. It can be found from Australia to Korea, Japan and India.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
ID tip
The oriental dollarbird has a length of up to 30 cm. It is dark brown but this is heavily washed with a bluish-green sheen on the back and wing coverts. Its belly and undertail coverts are light coloured, and it has glossy bright blue colouring on its throat and undertail. Its flight feathers are a darker blue. Its bill is short and wide and in mature animals is coloured orange-red with a black tip. It has very light blue patches on the outer parts of its wings which are highly visible in flight and for which it is named.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Where it lives
Recorded as a rare visitor in New Zealand.
When to see it
Peak activity in January · a variable species across most of its range
Easily confused with
Broad-billed RollerEurystomus glaucurusThe broad-billed roller is 29–30 cm in length.
Blue-throated RollerEurystomus gularisThe blue-throated roller is a dumpy, large-headed, thick-necked bird that frequents the tops of trees.
Azure DollarbirdEurystomus azureusThe azure dollarbird also known as the azure roller, purple dollarbird or purple roller, is a species of bird in the family Coraciidae.
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