The Oriental Magpie Robin is a commonly sighted bird around Orange County, Coorg. It can be spotted here especially during the guided bird watching session in the morning.

The bird’s call can be heard as early as 4:45 A.M! This bird is an important character as far as its role on plantations is concerned; it preys on beetles, grasshoppers, and other insects that are pests here.

The Oriental Magpie Robin is adorned with distinctive black and white colours on its body, and interestingly, possesses a long tail that is held upright as it forages on the ground or perches conspicuously. Interestingly, there’s greater geographic variation in the plumage of females of the species than males.

One of a Kind!

These birds are renowned for their songs and were popular as cagebirds at one time. A fascinating fact in this regard is that they imitate the call of several other species as part of their song. Additionally, the bird also emits different types of calls, such as threat calls and distress calls, depending on the occasion.

During the breeding season, males of the species sing loudly from tree-tops or other perches.

The bird is mostly sighted close to the ground, and hence might be easy to spot as a result. Additionally, the Oriental Magpie Robin is also sighted close to human habitat.

The Fascinating Species!

Hence when you are in Orange County next, don’t forget to look out for the Oriental Magpie Robin. This delightful bird might just make your day!

This entry was posted on Thursday, December 2nd, 2010 at 3:43 PM and is filed under Birds. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.