Introduction:
I decided to research the garden Magpie because I am seeing them everywhere in Ireland but i’ve never seen one in Canada.
Size:
-Garden Magpies can reach up to 16-18 inches long
-They usually weigh 7-9 ounces
Physical Description:
-Garden Magpies are mainly black and white birds, but the males have a cool green blue colour on the tips of its wings and the chest area
-They also have long pointed beaks and short rounded wings
-They also have wedge shaped tails
Habitat:
-The garden magpie lives all across Europe
-They nest in trees, but if there are no trees they nest on the ground
Diet:
-Magpies are omnivores
-The Garden Magpies eat mainly plants like berries and grains in the winter months
-Their summer diet is made up of bugs such as beetles, flies, caterpillars, spiders, worms and leatherjackets (which are crane fly larva)
-During the spring Magpies eat rodents, chicks and sometimes eggs from other birds
-In breeding season (autumn) the Garden Magpie takes eggs and newborn babies from other mates to feed to their new family
Predators:
-The main predators of The Garden Magpie are cats, dogs and birds of prey such as the goshawk
Random Facts:
-Did you know that garden Magpies are considered pests because they destroy gardens and crop
-A group of Magpies is called a parliament
-Magpies can survive approximately five years
-A Magpie is a sedentary bird which means for its whole life it stays in a mile radius of where it was born in
-Magpies are very intelligent, they are so intelligent that they can recognize themselves if they were to look in a mirror, only three other animals can do that which are apes, the Asian elephant and the bottlenose dolphin
-Magpies like to steal shiny objects like coins and jewelry, so if you live in Ireland and you left your necklace outside you better watch out😊