There are three species of magpies on earth but this one, the yellow-billed magpie (Pica nutalli), lives only in the open oak savannah of central and southern California.
Even though barn owls (Tyto alba) occur worldwide this video could only happen there.
Like all magpies the birds are brave and relentless. One of them pulls the owl’s wing!
What are the three Pica species? Eurasian (Pica pica) in Europe and Asia, black-billed (Pica hudsonia) in western North America, and yellow-billed (Pica nutalli) only in California.
(photo by J. Maughn on Flickr, Creative Commons license; click on the image to see the original. Video by Charles Sullivan on YouTube)
p.s. Yellow-billed magpies are hard to find near Chico, California ever since West Nile Virus came through. I was afraid I’d never see one but J. Maughn (his photo is at top) suggested looking at eBird for recent sightings. Ta dah! I went to a place near Big Chico Creek where magpies had been seen this month and found a pair building a nest. Life Bird!
I remember the first time I went to visit my then-to-be husband’s home in Oroville, California, in the northern Central Valley. I was SOOO excited to see the Yellow-billed Magpie. I’d grown to seriously dislike the magpies in Colorado, but I thought those yellow bills were magnificent! Thanks for the memory!
That’s how I came to see a white gyrfalcon in Schenley Park by Westinghouse pond about 15 years ago. The gyrfalcon was perched up in a tree near the road. I would never have noticed him, except that the CROWS, just like in this video, were harassing him, and they drew my attention to a magnificent large white bird. His back was to me and I thought he was a snowy owl. Then he turned and I saw him in profile. He was no owl, but a huge white falcon with big shoulders, I will never forget. Later, my son was playing football for 12-year-olds at a field in Wilkinsburg at the top of Penn Avenue hill. The bird put in an appearance while the boys were playing. He created a sensation among the boys. My son came home with stories of a big white bird they saw at their game.
Barbara, watch for a blog article next week with photos of a big white hawk.
Barbara, see my January 30 blog article about white hawks. Chances are that you saw a rare white red-tailed hawk. Link is here:
https://www.birdsoutsidemywindow.org/2018/01/31/who-is-this-white-hawk/
Ugh. Magpies are so LOUD! No sleeping in with them around, they will wake you up for sure and it’s not like a nice pretty melody either, it’s the screeching. Like nails on a chalkboard. Can you tell I’m not a big fan. 🙂
Thank you for this article. I live in Chico, CA and have noticed the literal absence of magpies in the area over the past several years. It was driving me crazy because I KNEW we used to have them and no one else seemed to notice that they were gone. I really thought they were extinct. I read your “p.s.” about sightings in Chico and was relieved. I wasn’t crazy and that although apparently very rare in Chico, that they still lived in other areas. Yes, they are loud but like the scrub jays in the area, they are entertaining.
I don’t know if this blog is still monitored but I live in North Highlands, CA. (Sacramento County). Yesterday I noticed up to 100 Yellow billed Magpies in my yard. It was amazing. I just went out in the yard today and they are still here. I have not seen a Magpie in years and never this many! Yes they make a lot of noise but that is part of the overall experience of seeing so many at once.