Eurasian magpie

bird

Also known as: Pica pica, common magpie

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Last updated

July 16, 2026

Quick Summary

The Eurasian magpie (Pica pica) is a bird species belonging to the family Corvidae. It is characterized by its black and white plumage, with iridescent blue-green on its tail. This species is found across northwestern Africa and Eurasia, extending to China. Eurasian magpies inhabit farmlands and open, tree-dotted country, feeding on insects, seeds, small vertebrates, eggs, and carrion. They construct large, round nests using twigs and mud.1

The Eurasian magpie is also recognized for its remarkable intelligence, comparable to that of great apes and aquatic mammals. They demonstrate abilities such as tool use, vocal imitation, and problem-solving. Magpies can even pass the mirror test, indicating self-recognition.2

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Eurasian Magpie
A True Bird Brain
…amount of superstition surrounding the Eurasian magpie (also called the common magpie), a bird known for its jet black and white feathers and purple-, green-, and blue-streaked wings. An old British rhyme predicts a person’s fate on the basis of the number of magpies they’ve seen: “One for sorrow, two…
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…amount of superstition surrounding the Eurasian magpie (also called the common magpie), a bird known for its jet black and white feathers and purple-, green-, and blue-streaked wings. An old British rhyme predicts a person’s fate on the basis of the number of magpies they’ve seen: “One for sorrow, two…
Read More

magpie
…iridescent blue-green tail, and the Eurasian magpie (P. pica), which is has similar coloration, but is slightly larger in size with a shorter tail. The geographic range of the black-billed magpie extends across large parts of North America from Alaska’s Aleutian Islands south and east to the Pacific Northwest and…
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…iridescent blue-green tail, and the Eurasian magpie (P. pica), which is has similar coloration, but is slightly larger in size with a shorter tail. The geographic range of the black-billed magpie extends across large parts of North America from Alaska’s Aleutian Islands south and east to the Pacific Northwest and…
Read More