In England, the European magpie also has a reputation for taking eggs, and yet when density of magpie populations increases, songbird density does not decrease; on the contrary, it increases too.
|
|
In Yellowstone Bear World (near Idaho Falls, Idaho) Externally, the black-billed magpie is almost identical to the European magpie, Pica pica, and is considered conspecific by many sources. The American Ornithologists' Union, however, splits it as a separate species, Pica hudsonia, on the grounds that its mtDNA sequence is closer to that of California's yellow-billed magpie, Pica nuttalli, than to the European magpie. If this view is correct, the Korean subspecies of the European magpie, Pica pica sericea, should also be considered a separate species. It appears that after the ancestral magpie spread over Eurasia, the Korean population became isolated, at which point the species crossed the Bering Land Bridge and colonized North America, where the two American magpies then differentiated.
|
|
A typical Magpie duck. The Magpie is a British breed of domestic duck. It has distinctive black and white markings reminiscent of the European magpie, and is a good layer of large eggs.
|
|
The magpie tanager (Cissopis leverianus ) is a South American species of tanager. It is the only member of the monotypic genus Cissopis. As suggested by its common name, this blue-black and white species is superficially reminiscent of a European magpie. With a total length of , a large percentage of which is tail, it is the longest species of tanager.
|
|
Incubating females have been reported to obtain most of their own food and later that for their young. The typical lifespan is unknown, but that of the carrion crow is four years. The maximum recorded age for a hooded crow is 16 years, and 9 months. This species is a secondary host of the parasitic great spotted cuckoo, the European magpie being the preferred host.
|
|
Self- awareness in animals and humans: developmental perspectives. New York (New York): Cambridge University Press. pp. 273–290. the European magpie, some cetaceans and an Asian elephant, but not for monkeys. The mirror test has been criticized by researchers because it is entirely focused on vision, the primary sense in humans, while other species rely more heavily on other senses such as the sense of smell in dogs.
|
|
In size it is a little smaller and slimmer than the European magpie (Pica pica) though the bill is relatively thicker. The overall colouring of the bird is black with the feathers quite silky in texture and having a purplish gloss in good light. The base of the tail tends to be more brown in colour than the rest of the body. The nasal plumes are somewhat upturned on top of the bill but fully cover the nostrils.
|
|
The Australian magpie (Gymnorhina tibicen) is a medium-sized black and white passerine bird native to Australia and southern New Guinea. Although once considered to be three separate species, it is now considered to be one, with nine recognised subspecies. A member of the Artamidae, the Australian magpie is placed in its own genus Gymnorhina and is most closely related to the black butcherbird (Melloria quoyi). It is not, however, closely related to the European magpie, which is a corvid.
|
|
Bird species are very diverse so because of them, Banjica forest is now a natural monument, protected by the state. 68 bird species live in the forest, 40 of which are resident birds, 16 are migratory birds and 12 are passing.Plate at forest's entrances The most common breeding birds are nightingale, blackcap, great tit, European magpie, hooded crow, common blackbird, woodpigeon and great spotted woodpecker. Other bird species in the forest include pheasant, common kestrel, Eurasian sparrowhawk, tawny owl and common chaffinch.
|
|
The Eurasian tree sparrow's untidy nest is built in a natural cavity, a hole in a building or the disused nest of a European magpie or white stork. The typical clutch is five or six eggs which hatch in under two weeks. This sparrow feeds mainly on seeds, but invertebrates are also consumed, particularly during the breeding season. As with other small birds, infection by parasites and diseases, and predation by birds of prey take their toll, and the typical life span is about two years.
|
|
In the Indian Subcontinent they have sometimes been found to parasitize the black drongo, the European magpie and possibly the black-headed oriole. Males may distract the hosts so that the female gets a chance to lay an egg in the nest. More often however, the female visits the nest of the host alone. The koel is not known to lay eggs in an empty host nest and a study in Pakistan found that the first koel eggs were laid, on average, within one and half days of the laying of the host's first egg.
|
|
Pies made of this were said to be served to those of lesser class who did not eat at the king's/lord's/governor's table, possibly following speculation in Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable but there is little evidence for this. Early references in cookbooks such as Liber Cure Cocorum present a grand dish with exotic spices. Another dish likely to be served with humble pie is rook pie (rooks being closely related to crows). "Pie" is also an antiquated term for the European magpie,"Magpie" in The New Century Book of Facts, 1911, pg.
|
|
Foxes, hares and roe deer inhabit the peninsula. However, with environmentalists warning that the island's biocoenosis has been overly affected, a new population of 60 hares and 100 pheasants was introduced into the ecosystem in 2006. Bird species include more common lapwings, mallards, quails and pheasants. Common woodland and parkland birds during the nesting season include great tit, blue tit, long-tailed tit, Eurasian nuthatch, European green woodpecker, great spotted woodpecker, golden oriole, nightingale, blackcap, common chaffinch, hooded crow, European magpie, common wood pigeon, feral pigeon, white wagtail and barn swallow.
|
|
Named for its distinctive black and white plumage, reminiscent of the colouration of the European magpie, the typical example of the breed is predominantly white with two large black areas on the back and top of the head. As the bird ages the black cap will normally begin to be flecked with white and may eventually become completely white. Blue, silver and chocolate which is very rare, are also colour varieties that Magpies can come in. However, blue is the only other variety besides black that is recognised by the American Poultry Association.
|
|
Upon the detection and rejection of a brood parasite's egg, the host's nest is destroyed and nestlings injured or killed. This threatening response indirectly enhances selective pressures favoring aggressive parasite behavior that may result in positive feedback between mafia-like parasites and compliant host behaviors. There are two avian species that have been speculated to portray this mafia- like behavior: the brown-headed cowbird of North America, Molothrus ater, and the great spotted cuckoo of Europe, Clamator glandarius. The great spotted cuckoo lays the majority of its eggs in the nests of the European magpie, Pica pica.
|
|
When this happens (usually in areas with a limited number of trees or with abundant food resources), a diffuse colony is formed. In this the black-billed magpie is intermediate between the European magpie, whose nests are much more spread out because a large territory is defended around each nest, and the yellow-billed magpie, which is always loosely colonial. Nests are loose but large accumulations of branches, twigs, mud, grass, rootlets, bark strips, vines, needles, and other materials, with branches and twigs constituting the base and framework. The nest cup is lined with fine rootlets, grass, and other soft material.
|
|
As with most small birds, mortality in the first year of life is high, but adults aged three to four years are regularly recorded, and the record is more than seven years. Eggs, chicks and fledglings of this ground-nesting species are taken by stoats, weasels and crows such as the European magpie, and the adults are hunted by birds of prey, particularly the sparrowhawk. Small birds are also at the mercy of the weather, particularly when migrating, but also on the breeding and wintering grounds. The common chiffchaff is occasionally a host of brood parasitic cuckoos, including the common and Horsfield's cuckoos, but it recognises and rejects non-mimetic eggs and is therefore only rarely successfully brood-parasitised.
|
|
Eggs, from the collection of the Museum de Toulouse fledgling The Eurasian tree sparrow reaches breeding maturity within a year from hatching, and typically builds its nest in a cavity in an old tree or rock face. Some nests are not in holes as such, but are built among roots of overhanging gorse or similar bush. Roof cavities in houses may be used, and in the tropics, the crown of a palm tree or the ceiling of a verandah can serve as a nest site. This species will breed in the disused domed nest of a European magpie, or an active or unused stick nest of a large bird such as the white stork, white-tailed eagle, osprey, black kite or grey heron.
|
|
Similar in shape to a European magpie, with the largest individuals possibly attaining the size of a raven, Archaeopteryx could grow to about 0.5 metres (1.6 ft) in length. Despite its small size, broad wings, and inferred ability to fly or glide, Archaeopteryx has more in common with other small Mesozoic dinosaurs than it does with modern birds. In particular, it shares the following features with the deinonychosaurs (dromaeosaurs and troodontids): jaws with sharp teeth, three fingers with claws, a long bony tail, hyperextensible second toes ("killing claw"), feathers (which suggest homeothermy), and various skeletal features. These features make Archaeopteryx a clear candidate for a transitional fossil between dinosaurs and birds, making it important in the study both of dinosaurs and of the origin of birds.
|
|
The male bird can be easily recognized by its bright yellow and black feathers. The common kestrel (Falco tinnunculus) can be observed over all open areas with flat wings spread and then pouncing down with closed wings on its prey of mice or other small mammals. Other observed bird species:Adviser Mr. Alfred Forstinger: Vogelkundliche Nachrichten OÖ – Naturschutz aktuell (Ornithologic news of Upper Austria) VNO 9/2/2001, p. 39 – 50 Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos), grey partridge (Perdix perdix), pheasant (Phasianus colchicus), quail (Coturnix coturnix), moorhen (Gallinula chloropus), wood pigeon (Columba palumbus), great spotted woodpecker (Dendrocopos major), skylark (Alauda arvensis), wren (Troglodytes troglodytes), robin (Erithacus rubecula), black redstart (Phoenicurus ochruros), blackbird (Turdus merula), song thrush (Turdus philomelos), garden warbler (Sylvia borin), blackcap (Sylvia atricapilla), willow warbler (Phylloscopus trochilus), chiffchaff (Phylloscopus collybita), goldcrest (Regulus regulus), common firecrest (Regulus ignicapillus), spotted flycatcher (Muscicapa striata), marsh tit (Poecile palustris), blue tit (Parus caeruleus), great tit (Parus major), coal tit (Periparus ater), short-toed treecreeper (Certhia brachydactyla), starling (Sturnus vulgaris), Eurasian jay (Garrulus glandarius), European magpie (Pica pica), carrion crow (Corvus corone), tree sparrow (Passer montanus), house sparrow (Passer domesticus), common chaffinch (Fringilla coelebs), greenfinch (Carduelis chloris), goldfinch (Carduelis carduelis), yellowhammer (Emberiza citrinella) und reed bunting (Emberiza schoeniclus).
|
|