The taxonomic status of the Western Marsh Harrier (Circus aeruginosus) and Eastern Marsh Harrier (C. spilonotus) has been controversial in the past, and those changes might mislead relevant records of these two species. Here, we briefly reviewed the taxonomic history of the two species, and pointed out that the plumage of juvenile of C. spilonotus and its Japanese population are similar to the C. aeruginosus. A comprehensive review of known records of the C. aeruginosus were also made. We found that due to taxonomic changes, misidentification and misinterpretation of reference, there′re some confusion in the historical records of these two species in China indeed. After a comprehensive examination on all known records of C. aeruginosus in China, as checked some relevant specimen, we confirmed that the C. aeruginosus being recorded in Xinjiang, Beijing, Yunnan, Guizhou, Qinghai, Inner Mongolia and Sichuan with plausible proofs, while the known records from other areas of China should be treated with caution.