Magpie

Magpies are birds of the Corvidae family. The black and white Eurasian magpie is widely considered one of the most intelligent animals in the world[1][2][3] and one of only a few non-mammal species able to recognize itself in a mirror test.[4] In addition to other members of the genus Pica, corvids considered as magpies are in the genera Cissa, Urocissa and Cyanopica.

This article is about the birds in the family Corvidae. For the black and white bird often referred to by English speakers simply as 'magpie', see Eurasian magpie. For the Australasian bird in the family Artamidae, see Australian magpie. For other uses, see Magpie (disambiguation).

Magpie
Eurasian magpie
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Chordata
Class:
Aves
Order:
Passeriformes
Family:
Corvidae
Genera
Magpie, Sweden 2016

Magpies of the genus Pica are generally found in temperate regions of Europe, Asia and western North America, with populations also present in Tibet and high elevation areas of India, i.e. Ladakh (Kargil and Leh) and Pakistan. Magpies of the genus Cyanopica are found in East Asia and also the Iberian peninsula. The birds called magpies in Australia are, however, not related to the magpies in the rest of the world (see Australian magpie).

Systematics and species

According to some studies, magpies do not form the monophyletic group they are traditionally believed to be—tails have elongated (or shortened) independently in multiple lineages of corvid birds.[5] Among the traditional magpies, there appear to be two distinct lineages. One consists of Holarctic species with black/white colouration and is probably closely related to crows and Eurasian jays. The other contains several species from South to East Asia with vivid colouration, which is predominantly green or blue. The azure-winged magpie and the Iberian magpie, formerly thought to constitute a single species with a most peculiar distribution, have been shown to be two distinct species and classified as the genus Cyanopica.[6]

Other 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 (as well as the North American) forms. Either the North American, Korean, and remaining Eurasian forms are accepted as three or four separate species, or there exists only a single species, Pica pica.[7]

Holarctic (black-and-white) magpies

Oriental (blue and green) magpies

Azure-winged magpies

Other "magpies"
  • The black magpie, Platysmurus leucopterus, is a treepie; it is neither a magpie nor, as was long believed, a jay. Treepies are a distinct group of corvids externally similar to magpies.
  • The Australian magpie, Cracticus tibicen, is conspicuously “pied”, with black and white plumage reminiscent of a Eurasian magpie. It is a member of the family Artamidae and not a corvid.

Cultural references

Asia

In East Asian culture, the magpie is a very popular kind of bird. It is a symbol of good luck and good fortune.

The magpie is also a common subject in Chinese paintings. It is also often found in traditional Chinese poetry and couplets. In addition, in the folklore of China, all the magpies of the Qixi Festival every year will fly to the Tianhe River, set up on a bridge, and the separated Cowherd and Weaver Girl will meet, so that in Chinese culture, the bridge often becomes a relationship between men and women.

Magpies have an important place in the birth myth of Ai Xinjue Luo Bukuri Yushun, the ancestor of the Qing Dynasty.

The Korean magpie is a national bird and national symbol of Korea, sometimes referred to as the Asian magpie or Chinese magpie.


Pakistan

Magpies are also found widely in the northern areas of Pakistan, specially in Baltistan. The common name in Baltistan is "khaa-strap".


Europe

In European culture, the magpie is reputed to collect shiny objects, often in fiction things like wedding rings or other valuable or significant objects (often causing consternation at the disappearance, and false accusation of humans in the plot of the story); the most well-known example probably being Rossini's opera "La Gazza Ladra" (The Thieving Magpie). Recent research [8] has shown that there is little truth in the legend, and that magpies - like many animals - are actually unsettled by shiny, blue, or otherwise unusual objects.

References
  1. "World's smartest birds - Welcome Wildlife". welcomewildlife.com. 3 January 2017.
  2. Connor, Steve (19 August 2008). "Magpies reflect on a newly discovered intellectual prowess". The Independent.
  3. "Eurasian Magpie: A True Bird Brain". britannica.com.
  4. Prior H, et al. (2008). De Waal F (ed.). "Mirror-Induced Behavior in the Magpie (Pica pica): Evidence of Self-Recognition". PLoS Biology. Public Library of Science. 6 (8): e202. doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.0060202. PMC 2517622. PMID 18715117.
  5. Ericson et al. (2005)
  6. Kyukov et al, Synchronic east–west divergence in azure-winged magpies (Cyanopica cyanus) and magpies (Pica pica), Journal of Zoological Systematics and Evolutionary Research 42(4): 342-351 (2004)
  7. Lee et al., 2003
  8. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-28797519 [accessed 2019-12-2]

Bibliography

Further reading
  • Song, S.; Zhang, R.; Alström, P.; Irestedt, M.; Cai, T.; Qu, Y.; Ericson, P.G.P.; Fjeldså, J.; Lei, F. (2017). "Complete taxon sampling of the avian genus Pica (magpies) reveals ancient relictual populations and synchronous Late-Pleistocene demographic expansion across the Northern Hemisphere". Journal of Avian Biology. 49 (2): jav-01612. doi:10.1111/jav.01612.


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