Yellow-billed Magpie

Pica nuttalliOrder: PASSERIFORMES Family: Crows and Jays (Corvidae)

Codes: Common Name: YBMA Scientific Name: PIANUT ITIS Taxonomic No.: 179723

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Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.

Yellow-billed Magpie

Yellow-billed Magpie: Large jay with black hood, back and breast, featherless, pale yellow spot behind eye, and white belly. Bill is yellow. Upperwings are iridescent blue-green with large white shoulder patches. Tail is iridescent green-black, very long, and wedge-shaped. Legs and feet are black.

● Song: "kwah-kwah-kwah"

● Foraging & Feeding: Yellow-billed Magpie: Diet consists of insects, carrion, fruits, berries, and acorns; also known to steal nestlings in order to feed its own young. Usually forages by walking, running, or hopping on the ground.

● Breeding & nesting: Yellow-billed Magpie: Five to eight olive eggs, marked with brown or olive, are laid in a large, domed stick nest. Nest is often built in a tree overgrown with mistletoe and is difficult to detect. Incubation ranges from 16 to 18 days and is carried out by the female.

● Similar species: Yellow-billed Magpie: Black-billed Magpie is larger and has black bill and no bare yellow facial patches.

Flight Pattern

Several weak wing beats, then several quicker ones.

● Range & Habitat: Yellow-billed Magpie: Resident in California's Central Valley and adjacent foothills. Preferred habitats include oak savannas, oak woods, riverside growth, ranches, and suburbs.

^BreedingMonogamous, Colonial

^PopulationCommon in restricted range, Declining slightly

^MigrationNonmigratory

^Weight6.1 Ounces

4 and 6 letter alpha codes

The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..

Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.

Field Guide to Birds of North America