European Magpie

This bird is also known as the Common Magpie and the Eurasian Magpie. They can be found in northwest Africa, most of Asia and throughout all of Europe. They are members of the crow family.

A beautiful black and white bird with a long tail. Often seen perched on the backs of cattle, they will pick off the ticks that are living there. Their diet consists mainly of insects, but during the winter they may eat berries and nuts.

Mostly they forage on the ground eating insects. Magpies will often store food by  making a hole with their bill in the soil, then regurgitating their food into the hole and covering it up. They usually return to the hole within a day or two, yum!

When they walk along the ground they can look a bit funny! It will hop sideways when it gets excited and will take very high steps when it walks around.