About the Oriental Magpie
The Oriental magpie is a species of magpie found from southeastern Russia to eastern China, Korea, Taiwan, and northern Indochina and Myanmar. It is also naturalised in Japan. Other names include Chinese magpie and Asian magpie. The scientific name serica means "silky [texture]" or "Chinese"; this is the original spelling, though sometimes erroneously "corrected" to sericea.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
ID tip
It is 45 cm long. Compared to the Eurasian magpie, it is slightly smaller, with a proportionally shorter tail and longer bill and tarsi (lower legs), and darker with less white in the plumage. The back, tail, and particularly the remiges show (according to source) either bluer, less green iridescence compared to Eurasian magpie, or conversely, more green. The rump plumage is mostly black, with narrow, often greyish-white band, which connects the white shoulder patches as in its relatives. The Oriental magpie has the same call as the Eurasian magpie, though somewhat softer.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Where it lives
When to see it
Peak activity in December · a resident species across most of its range
Easily confused with
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.
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.
Asir MagpiePica asirensisThe Asir magpie (Pica asirensis) is about 45–46 cm (18–18 in) long, and its weight is 200–240 g (7.1–8.5 oz).
Side by side: Eurasian Magpie vs Oriental Magpie · Black-billed Magpie vs Oriental Magpie
Learn the Oriental Magpie for real
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