Earn Your Magpie's Trust and Never Be Dive-bombed Again

Two sets of magpie parents have brought their chicks in our yard, giving us a dozen magpie babies over five years and we have never been dive-bombed. 

Looking back over the first twenty years of living in Australia, it's hard to believe that I used to make every effort to avoid these birds -  and now I love them so dearly.   Like many Australians, I would hear stories about people being dive-bombed and chased by magpies during the breeding season.  Comparatively few magpies actually do attack humans, but it doesn't take that many stories to give the whole species a very bad name.  So, wary of their reputation, I would take long detours when necessary to avoid passing one.  But that was when I didn't know how friendly and loving these birds really are. 

Fatty and Molly were an old magpie couple and had only recently become friends with humans. Maggie, as all the readers who have read his story on this site before know, was our dogs' bird and grew up here. But his mate Vicky came from the bush and was not used to humans. 

Both magpie mothers Vicky and Molly have literally led me through the bush and shown me their nests.  Moreover when their kids were born, Maggie and Vicky have always brought their babies to see us, within a few days of coming out of the nest. Molly, who was always shy of humans and liked to keep her distance, had no problems leaving her children in our care. 

This is quite remarkable considering how protective magpies are of their children. These are wild birds. They are not tame and have not eaten from our hands.  But they know they can trust us.

By giving them water and some food, they know that we are friends. Because we talk to them, call them, and show a genuine interest in their welfare, they respond with the same love and trust. 

Even magpies in other parts of the country, who don’t know us, have dropped their defences when we talked to them and let us walk past their children without attacking us. I think they can sense that we are not mistrusting of them. They listen to the tone of our voice and recognise that there is no threat.

Don't be afraid to talk to a bird! They won't understand the words, but they will get the message that you are their friend.

The photographs in the slideshow below are of  Baby Gemmy, Vicky and Maggie's first child.  The images have been scanned from old photographs (remember the pre-digital age?).

(click on the 'next' button to forward through the slides).
Previous Image 1/6 NextBaby Gemmy: Maggie and Vicky's First BornLooking down from her high home

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Is Your Magpie a Male or a Female?

Generally, telling the sex of an adult magpie is often quite easy. The distinguishing feature lies in the white hood on the back of their heads and necks. Female magpies tend to be greyer at the lower end of the hood, while adult male magpies will have very white hoods right to the bottom.

Here are some pictures of Vicky (female) on the left and Maggie (male) on the right

Female

Male

One has to then observe their necks when its bent down to spot the greys.

From a distance when their heads are up, a female can be mistaken for a male bird.

Female

Male

In some older female magpies, the grey on their necks tend to fade becoming quite white over the years. Females also tend to be smaller in size or more timid at the start of a friendship than the males.

 The hoods of juvenile magpies tend to be fuzzier and brown-beige almost all over that slowly change to clearer colours as they reach adulthood. The females tend to have darker shades of brown in their hoods, while the males are lighter coloured.

Here is a picture of Sparky (female) and Billy (male) when they were both around one year old:

Juvenile Female

Juvenile Male

Keys To Encouraging A Diversity Of Birds In The Garden

Provide a safe corridor for the smaller birds:
 
Most gardens (like mine) have some trees, some wide open shrubs and some annuals.  While these are beautiful and easy to maintain, they do not provide the smaller birds with adequate protection.   Wrens , thornbills and finches like plants with very dense foliage so they can squeeze their way into the tiny gaps towards the centre of the shrub making it impossible for the noisy-miners and butcherbirds to follow them. Some of the plants that wrens like most are lantana and Indian hawthorn. They also like foraging in densely planted herb gardens. Providing a waterbath in the shelter of the overhanging branches of these plants, gives the birds a safer area to frequent.

Noisy miners are nectar eating birds and love grevilleas, which being open shrubs are perfectly designed for these birds to hop about the flowers and hang off the end of the tips of the branches for their drink. These plants are too open, wide, and their branches being strong enough to support the weight of the bigger birds, do not provide the barrier needed by the smaller birds. The noisy miners and butcherbirds are also fairly light and small in size themselves so they can sit on the stems of most long-stemmed annuals and plants with long flowering seasons and so chase the smaller birds out of the patch.  

Richard Hastings found in his research that corridors of bipinnate acacias (like green wattles and sunshine wattles) were suitable for thornbills and passerines (National Parks Journal, Feb-Mar 2006). The wrens in our yard, I noticed, would stop visiting if I pruned the weeping roses. They needed a safe corridor of thorny plants through which they could travel to the water bath. Pruning any of the plants that provided them with a safe refuge would increase their vulnerability by exposing them to danger. 

Sadly in some parts of the world, including here in Australia, lantana grows wildly and chokes the paddocks. The tragedy is that the lantana plant growing in the wild, even in the harsh drought conditions, provides the smaller birds with some of the best protection there is. Alternative shrubs that can grow freely in the bush need to be urgently found and planted in gardens, and along highways as well to build reasonable corridors for the more vulnerable species.  Some researchers recommend that at least 15 percent of the understory should consist of low stemmed, thick foliage plants with short-flowering seasons.

Interestingly, when doing my research for this article I also discovered that wrens and sparrows are pretty aggressive birds themselves and often break into heated territorial squabbles with each other.  One writer mentioned that no small bird was safe within an acre of a house wren's bird-house!  The little darlings can be quite ferocious in protecting their territories.

Separate their feeding areas:

There are at least two sets of birds to be managed here.  

If one is designing a garden from scratch, it would be easier to plant the nectar bearing small trees and shrubs in the corner farthest from the thorny and dense shrubbery and herb patches suitable for the smaller species.  This would provide a safe zone for the fairy wrens, thornbills and finches, while keeping the noisy-miners occupied in another part of the garden.  The butcherbirds too would not be able to penetrate their way through the thorns giving the little creatures a hideout of their own.  If placed near the wall and eaves of the house or near window sills, the long sweeping branches of these shrubs would also provide cover for the nests and fledglings of the smaller birds.  The big birds tend to occupy the taller trees and having them away from the house and dense shrubs keeps them out of the way.

The second set of birds to be managed are the large birds like the crows and currawongs.  They will eat anything and everything in sight, given half a chance.  One has to keep guard while the other birds are feeding and discourage the crows from coming forward.  Crows are very attentive and can be quite shy.  One can usually just shoo them off and give them scraps in a different area of the yard after the other have eaten and left.  Currawongs too are shy birds and can be managed.

Talk to the birds and tell them what you want them to do: 

Yes, you read that right.  Once you have a relationship with the birds, they think of you as a friend and a senior member of their extended family.  Birds of all kinds, we've found, are always keen to talk and negotiate. Some take a little more encouragement and time than others. But eventually, they do listen.  

I am not much of a gardener and I have made very few changes to the garden that came with the house.  When I stuck some plants into the ground, hoping they would grow, it was with little knowledge of the variety of birds around our yard and the impact of the plants on their lifestyles.   We had already made many friends from the more aggressive species before we noticed any wrens or even knew that as a species they were in trouble.  And interestingly, it was the wrens who made the first move and came and talked to us.  

When we see the miners chasing the wrens, we tell them not to. They want to please us, so they listen.  Same with the crows and currawongs. We tell them that we want them to wait until after the magpies, butcherbirds and noisy-miners have eaten and left.  They listen and patiently wait their turn.  They will even wait for the rosellas and crested pigeons to finish their feed when we tell them to.  But one has to supervise.  Even with our favourites, if they are being naughty and chasing other birds away - we tell them to bring those birds and to let them eat first.  Of course they protest, plead, beg and try to make us change our minds. And sometimes its hard to be firm with them, because they are so cute and can find so many ways of endearing themselves. But if we persist, they listen and change their behaviour. 

Stay in a learning mode:

As we learn more about the ways and needs of the different species in our backyard and develop our ability to communicate with them, we have found that the birds too begin to open their hearts and respond to us and each other in a more co-operative and friendly way. Learning to relate to each other in a loving way and growing together, is I believe the most essential key in this new stage of the development of life on our precious planet.


Gitie House

The Birds Are A Trancing....

Birds love sunbathing.

Basking in the full sun, even on hot days, many species can be seen enjoying their siesta, in different poses and also at different times of the day.  We call it 'trancing' as they look like they are in a deep trance.

Sunbathing poses:

Full spread:-

One of the favourite poses used by the magpies and noisy-miners, is to squat in a shallow dip on the ground and spread their wings out at full length.  I think this gives them the chance to rest their legs and perhaps also rest the muscles that hold their wings open.  Cindy and Tammie our magpies liked resting against the bank and spreading their wings.  The miners birds too like to fully spread their wings while basking.

The first time I saw our magpies Cindy and Tammie in this position, I got a real fright. The looked quite lifeless and like they had been spread out in the sun to dry.  I thought that had been injured or were ill.  Then I saw them move their heads - they were semi-awake. Wanting to make certain that they were not injured, unable to fly and in need of help, I walked up to them.  Seeing me approach they got up, looking quite drowsy.  Maggie came down from the trees where he had been keeping watch and playing the role of 'sentry' while the girls got their break.  The girls flew into the trees, and I was quite pleased to see they were capable of rising out of the trance state and fly, even though their dopey look suggested that they were nor quite ready for chatter and chase.

The noisy miners and butcherbirds also like to trance and we have also seen the bar-shouldered doves, crested pigeons and crows go in and out of trances.  Our yard with no dogs or cats gives the birds a safe place for their sunbathing activities.  Safety is a big issue for this activity as their reflexes are much slower.  Sometimes their trances have lasted for over 15 minutes. There is always at least one bird on guard in the trees to warn them of approaching danger.  And when the warning is issued, they are usually pretty quick in returning to the trees, much to my relief.

A shallow dip in soft mud or a slope on the side of a bank seem to be favourite locations for a trance. Minnie and our other noisy miners would land so excitedly near a small dip in the ground caused by the rain. Within seconds she would fall into a trance and stay there for almost five minutes. The magpies would trance beside them, or sometimes wait for them to vacate the spot.  Other birds would wait for their turn.

 Semi-spread Position:-

As the birds got more confident and safer in our presence, we noticed their 'trancing patterns' as we call it.  The magpies would always go into a full spread trance at the same time every morning. Later in the day, they would go into a half-trance, that is in a sitting position on the ground, with their head cocked onto one side and sometimes only one wing spread out. They really look so funny in this pose.

Sitting:-

At other times the birds have just gone into a trance while sitting. They relax their muscles and go off to sleep. They seem quite immoble at times.  Below you can see Dimpy in a trance at the door and Sophie in a trance on the lawn. One second they are talking to us, the next they are going into a deep sleep almost as if they have no control over it. 

Frequency and Time patterns:

The need to trance is almost reflex, I feel.  At times Maggie (male magpie) has just walked up to us and fallen into a trance at our feet almost.  While Cindy and Tammie (his sisters) have joined him nearby, while Ron and I are standing talking.  While we are careful not to make racket or frighten them by creating a lot of movement, they seem oblivious to our presence, treating us as part of their 'sentry' squad.  On occasions we have even left our spot to go inside to get the camera and the birds have continued to stay in their trance trusting that they are safe around us.

Other times Dimpy the butcherbird has eaten a small bit of food and gone into a trance right there beside it in the middle of the yard. The noisy miners, magpies and butcherbirds are quite happy to trance together on the bank. I have seen crows have their sunbath near the water bowls in mid afternoon.

The timings seem to be more or less regular assuming there are no other activities requiring their attention. For example, if they are busy alerting the district about the eagles flying around or chasing hawks, or keeping an eye on passing planes, then sunbathing has to wait for a more opportune moment. Other events that affect the sun basking times are when visiting birds arrive, or juveniles and young adults are passing through their territory.

On these occasions the birds tend to take shorter trances in a sitting or semi-spread position. Otherwise on a good quiet day, I have seen them sun bask in all three positions at different times of the day.  Morning seems to be the full spread sun bathing time, while mid-morning seems to be the semi-spread basking time and late afternoons are sitting trance times.  Interestingly I have also seen them trance on cloudy days and even in the shade. Though they all do appear to prefer the sunshine for this activity, I think this may also be the time for a quick nap, which would explain why they do it regardless of the weather.

In the picture on the left below, Cindy and Minnie are in trance together. On the right young Kimbie is in a full trance while Mum Molly keeps watch.