clouded magpie vs Coconut Lorikeet

Abraxas sylvata compared with Trichoglossus haematodus

Key Differences

• clouded magpie is Vulnerable while Coconut Lorikeet is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	clouded magpie	Coconut Lorikeet
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Insecta (Insects)	Aves (Birds)
Order	Lepidoptera (Butterflies & Moths)	Psittaciformes (Parrots)
Family	Geometridae	Psittacidae (True Parrots)
Genus	Abraxas	Trichoglossus
Species	Abraxas sylvata	Trichoglossus haematodus

Evolutionary Relationship

clouded magpie and Coconut Lorikeet share a common ancestor at the Kingdom level: Animalia. (Animals)

Conservation Status

clouded magpie

VU — Vulnerable

Coconut Lorikeet

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	clouded magpie	Coconut Lorikeet
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

clouded magpie

Habitat

Typically found in virtually all terrestrial and freshwater habitats.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. Currently classified as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, this species faces significant conservation challenges across its range.

Coconut Lorikeet

Habitat

Typically found in various aerial, terrestrial, and aquatic environments.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Norway, Singapore, Taiwan, and United Kingdom.

clouded magpie

The clouded magpie (Abraxas sylvata) is a geometrid moth in the family Geometridae found across temperate Europe, extending eastward through Russia to Japan. The adult wingspan measures approximately 32–42 mm, with white wings bearing a distinctive pattern of yellow-orange and dark grey to black spots and patches arranged in rows across the forewing and hindwing, creating a striking patterned appearance resembling the magpie coloring of the related magpie moth Abraxas grossulariata, but with a more yellowish, muted tone and less black — hence 'clouded.' Adults fly in one generation from June to July, resting on leaf surfaces and attending woodland flowers for nectar. The larvae feed on wych elm (Ulmus glabra) and occasionally other Ulmus species in mature deciduous woodland and woodland edges. The clouded magpie has become less common in parts of its European range due to the widespread loss of mature elms from Dutch elm disease, which devastated European elm populations from the 1970s onward. Conservation of this species requires the protection of surviving mature elm trees and management of regrowth elms in woodland ecosystems.

Coconut Lorikeet

The coconut lorikeet (Trichoglossus haematodus) is a medium-sized, vividly coloured parrot in the family Psittaculidae, native to the islands of Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, New Caledonia, and northeastern Australia. It is one of the most recognisable parrots in Australasia, featuring a scarlet breast, dark blue-purple head and belly, green upperparts, and yellow-orange barring — a striking mosaic of colour that varies across its numerous island subspecies, many of which have been elevated to full species status in recent taxonomic revisions. The coconut lorikeet inhabits forest, woodland, coconut plantations, gardens, and flowering trees across its range, feeding almost exclusively on nectar, pollen, and soft fruits using its specialised brush-tipped tongue — an adaptation unique to lories and lorikeets within the parrots. It is nomadic, following the flowering of trees such as Eucalyptus, Casuarina, and Melaleuca across its range, and is an important pollinator of many forest plants. The species has no natural presence in Norway; database records to that effect are data artifacts. In Australia and Papua New Guinea, T. haematodus (in its broad or restricted sense) is often abundant, and it has established feral populations in parts of Western Australia and elsewhere. It is classified as Least Concern by the IUCN, with large, stable populations across its extensive Australasian and Pacific distribution. It is widely kept as a pet worldwide.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 2 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇳🇴 Norway