| Magpies are often seen as the "villain of the piece" with
their aggressive behaviour and robbing of other birds' eggs and nestlings.
However, most members of the crow family act in a similar way including
the shy, colourful Jay without arousing the enmity that the Magpie seems
to incur. Both sexes are alike with black upper-parts and a long tail accounting
for over half the length of the bird, the under-parts are white. Closer
inspection reveal the black colouring to be more like an iridescent blue,
green, or purple. The young have much shorter tails with less glossy plumage.
They can be found everywhere in Devon and Cornwall from coastal areas to
farmlands, cities to moorland. |
