Provence bird: the eurasian magpie

Overview

• The magpie belongs to the corvid family. Corvids are medium to large passerines. Lifespan: 15 years
• Voice: the magpie ‘chatters’. Its warning call (when a predator approaches, for example) is easy to recognise: it is a rapid series of 4 to 8 sharp notes, ‘tcha cha cha cha cha chak’.

Habitat

• The magpie does not migrate. It often lives in groups (‘gregarious behaviour’) in winter.
  • city outskirts
  • agricultural areas
  • groves
  • wooded areas
  • meadows
  • mountain outskirts
  • parks & gardens
  • in the city

Physical features

• Large size
• Powerful beak (like most corvids)
• Dark brown eyes
• Black, sturdy legs and toes
• Silhouette: long tail
• Feathering: black (with blue, purple and green highlights), white and metallic blue-green
• No sexual dimorphism
• White abdomen
• Size: 40-51 cm
• Wingspan: 52-60 cm
• Weight: between 2 and 3 kg

Diet

• The magpie is omnivorous.
• What it eats (in order of priority and depending on availability):
  • insects
  • berries, seeds and nuts (in winter)
  • carrion, carcasses, eggs, nestlings and small rodents.

Breeding

• The magpie lays one or two clutches (5 to 7 eggs)
• Incubation period = 22 days.
• Magpie chicks fledge after 22 to 27 days (after hatching).

• Domain: biota
• Kingdom: animalia
• Phylum: chordata
• Class: aves
• Order: passeriformes
• Family: corvidae
• Genus: pica
• Species: Pica pica