The magpies are medium to large, often colorful and noisy passerine birds of the crow family, Corvidae. They are closely allied to the jays and treepies. The names 'jay', 'treepie' and 'magpie' are to a certain extent interchangeable, not reflecting any genuine genetic difference between the groups.

Recent research has cast doubt on the taxonomy of the Pica magpies, since it appears that P. hudsonia and P. nuttalli may not be different species, whereas the Korean race of P. pica is genetically very distinct from the other Eurasian (and even the North American) forms. Either the North American, Korean, and remaining Eurasian forms are accepted as 3 or 4 separate species, or there exists only a single species, Pica pica.

Name

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The prefix "mag-" is short for "Margaret." Known for its noisy chattering, the bird acquired its name as an allusion to nagging. It could have also been named after "Maggot" because it stole eggs and nestlings from other birds. The suffix "-pie" may be a reference to its mixed colors. "Pied" is commonly used to describe black and white color patterns in animals.

In old English sometimes known as a Chatterpie. Leaving it's name, for instance, in Chatterpie Lane, in the village of Combe, Oxfordshire UK.

Species

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Genus Pica

• European Magpie Pica pica
• American Black-billed Magpie Pica hudsonia (may be conspecific with P. pica)
• Yellow-billed Magpie Pica nuttalli (probably conspecific with P. pica/P. hudsonica)
• Korean Magpie Pica sericea (may be conspecific with P. pica)

Genus Urocissa

• Formosan Blue Magpie Urocissa caerulea
• Red-billed Blue Magpie, Urocissa erythrorhyncha
• Gold-billed Magpie, Urocissa flavirostris
• White-winged Magpie, Urocissa whiteheadi
• Sri Lanka Blue Magpie, Urocissa ornata

Genus Cyanopica

• Azure-winged Magpie, Cyanopica cyana

Genus Cissa

• Green Magpie, Cissa chinensis
• Yellow-breasted Magpie, Cissa hypoleuca
• Short-tailed Magpie, Cissa thalassina

The Black Magpie, Platysmurus leucopterus, despite its name, is a jay.

Other corvids resembling magpies include the treepies, genus Dendrocitta.

The Australian Magpie has the black and white colours of a magpie, but it is not a magpie (or a corvid). The black and white Magpie moth is also named for its appearance.

See also

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• European Magpie for magpie folklore

References

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• Lee, Sang-im et al. (2003): Phylogeny of magpies (genus Pica) inferred from mtDNA data. Mol. Phylogenet. Evol. Vol.29, p.250-257. PDF fulltext
• The Word Origin Calender: Sat./Sun. March, 11-12, 2006

External links

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• Magpie videos on the Internet Bird Collection

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