A national institute announced that it has detected a type of drongo bird typically found in Southeast Asia on an island south of Jeju Island, the first time the species has been discovered in the country.

According to the National Institute of Biological Resources on Wednesday, the bird, tentatively named "big beak hair-crested drongo” as it awaits an official name Korean, was found on Mara Island on June 10.

The species is around 27 to 29 centimeters long and has black feathers throughout its body with a blue sheen over its head, back and outer wings.

The tropical species is known to inhabit countries in Southeast Asia such as Thailand, Vietnam and Myanmar, and the latest discovery means that Mara Island has become the farthest location northeastward from its primary habitat to host the bird.

The state agency suspects that the bird had temporarily lost its way during migration and released it after attaching an identification ring for future research.

The institute plans to analyze data to determine whether the species is expanding its presence northward.