This bird is related to crows and regular magpies, and it is just as clever. Red-billed blue magpies can remember where they have hidden food, recognise individual people's faces and even mimic sounds they hear in the forest.
The long tail is not just for show - it helps the magpie balance as it swoops between trees at speed, and the flash of brilliant blue in flight can startle predators or confuse them. The bird is fast and agile in woodland.
Red-billed blue magpies live in family groups. They are noisy and social - you often hear them before you see them, calling back and forth through the trees. The whole group helps look after the young.
In Hong Kong, these magpies live mostly in country parks and woodland areas, but they are not shy - they will sometimes come into gardens and parks where trees grow. Lucky birdwatchers spot them at nature reserves near the city.