Thanks to folk art, people have known the magpie from early childhood. But what does a person know about the way of life of this bird? Magpie is not as simple as it might seem at first glance. Compared to other birds, it has a high level of intelligence. The bird knows how to create a strong family and will take care of its offspring. In addition, the magpie easily tolerates unfavorable living conditions.
The magpie is a beautiful and bright bird, its black and white shiny color of feathers cannot be confused with the color of plumage, other representatives of the bird family. This is an intelligent, cunning and courageous bird, its image is often used in fairy tales, proverbs and sayings. In a small poem that parents read to children, the main character is forty.
Appearance
The magpie belongs to the family of raven (raven) birds. The most famous representatives are jays, sandpipers and crows. The total number of the family includes more than 120 species of birds.
The size of a magpie is slightly smaller than a common crow. It has beautiful plumage and a long tail. The main color of the feathers is represented by a black velvet shade with a characteristic purple tint and a metallic sheen. The belly and shoulders are painted bright white. Thanks to this contrast, the magpie looks very impressive and easy to remember.
The bird has a streamlined body, round eyes and a straight beak with a slight curvature. Thin legs and long tail add grace to the magpie's appearance. The shape of the tail can be different. In some birds, it can expand from base to tip, while in others it has peculiar vortices on the sides.
It is difficult to determine the sex of an individual by appearance. The color of the plumage and the size of the bird are the same for the male and the female. The average weight of an individual is 215 g, while males can be slightly heavier than females. The length of the bird, including the tail, is 50 cm, and the wingspan reaches 90 cm.
During the year, the brightness of the plumage may change. When spring comes, the feathers begin to fade, and at the beginning of June they become completely expressionless. The molt period in juveniles begins in June. Adult birds may molt not only in July, but also in August. To determine the age of a magpie, you need to pay attention to its tail and plumage color. Young birds have a shorter and dull tail, and white feathers have a gray tint.
Where do magpies live
Magpies live in many parts of the world. This bird can be found in European countries, the Far East and Asia. In Japan, the magpie lives on the island of Kyushu, where it is protected as a natural monument. In Africa, these birds can be found in the coastal areas of Tunisia, Morocco and Algeria. In North America, the magpie lives in Alaska and Baja California. A small group of birds lives in Kamchatka.
A species of magpie that has blue plumage lives in two different places around the globe. Some representatives of the blue magpie settled in the Far East, while others in Spain and Portugal. For science, it still remains a mystery why one species of bird was separated by thousands of kilometers.
On the island of Taiwan in the Pacific Ocean, there is an incredibly beautiful bird called the thick-billed azure magpie. She prefers to live in the mountains at an altitude of 1200 m. The people of Taiwan consider the bird a symbol of the island and try to preserve its population.
The migratory magpie lives in Scandinavia, the rest of the species are sedentary. They are perfectly adapted for life in unfavorable winter conditions. Magpies prefer to settle next to people, where it is possible to easily get food for themselves. Magpie nests can be found in gardens and parks. In the wild, they are found in deep forests and tropical jungles.
Lifestyle
Magpies, like crows, have intelligence and ingenuity. This is a cautious bird, which with its own voice is able to notify all the inhabitants of the forest about the approaching danger. Therefore, it is not for nothing that there is a saying “the magpie on the tail brought”. Magpies, using loud chirping, constantly talk with congeners, and some birds are able to imitate the sounds of other animals.
Unlike the magpie raven, it is a more agile and agile bird. Often she is interested in shiny objects, but she does not specifically hunt for them. If she steals the thing she likes, she will hide it in her nest.
The magpie has well-developed intellectual abilities. This is the only bird in the world that recognizes itself in the mirror. For example, if you install a mirror in front of a parrot, then he will perceive his reflection as another parrot.
For food, the magpie uses any food. Since the bird belongs to the corvid family, it feeds not only on animals and plants, but also on carrion. Therefore, they like to accompany larger predators to feast on the remains of their prey.
The bird loves to visit other people's nests, it eats eggs with pleasure and drags off chicks. At the same time, the magpie tries to be careful, since small birds are able to defend themselves. They often gather in flocks to drive out the nest-robber in disgrace.
Moving on the ground, the magpie hunts for small rodents and lizards. Snails, beetles and insect larvae supplement her diet. The city bird is not afraid of people and calmly steals food from them. If necessary, her courage goes beyond all boundaries, and the magpie is able to steal food from under the nose of the dog.
In African countries, magpies love to seek food in pastures where buffaloes graze. There they not only catch insects, but also collect parasites that hide in the wool on the backs of animals. Thus, by doing the buffaloes a favor, they find food for themselves.
Reproduction
In the first year, the birds look for a mate. Throughout their lives, magpies remain faithful to each other. They can settle alone or create a colony of several pairs. The nests of these birds are especially neat. Unlike the crow's nest, the magpie's house is folded in the form of a ball, inside which you can get through the side entrance. To build a nest, birds use small branches. Feathers, wool and soft grass serve as bedding for chicks.
A sly couple builds several houses at once, and only one will be used for raising offspring. Magpies need the rest of the nests as a spare dwelling. Moving around different houses, they mislead predators and thus protect the main nest. In nature, the magpie has many enemies. Their nests are attacked by martens. Adults are prey for hawks, owls and other larger birds.
On average, the female lays about 5 eggs and incubates them for 3 weeks. Chicks are born naked and blind. Both parents are engaged in raising offspring. They take turns to fly to the nest and feed the chicks. The matured cubs leave the nest and live on the branches, while the parents continue to feed them. After the chicks get stronger and can fly on their own, they go in search of food with their parents.
Man's attitude to magpie
In the countries of East Asia, the magpie was called the messenger of happiness, and the Indian tribes considered the bird to be the spirit of the forest. Unlike these peoples, the Europeans treated the forty negatively. The crackling of the magpie notified the inhabitants of the forest about the appearance of a man, and thus she disrupted the hunt. During sowing work on arable land, the bird pecked grain and damaged the crop. In addition, magpies are considered a pest because they spoil the nests of songbirds.
But the magpie is not only a pest. It destroys harmful insects, small rodents and snails, which are dangerous for the development of agriculture. Magpie is friendly to a person. It can be easily tamed, but it is not usually kept as a poultry.
