Magpies

[Exeldama]

Why do people seem to want to kill them...??

[tracy]

Ah, you have asked this one before?! Someone after them again?

(http://www.swog.org.uk/forum/topic.php?id=330)

[Exeldama]

I seem to come across lots of traps, with magpies in.... personally i think they are clever and buy you have a better memory than me... asked it twice..phew.

[tracy]

Lol. I remembered because we also had someone trapping them in our area - but I think we have got rid of them now.

[treebloke]

Tracy, do you mean you got rid of the traps or the magpies.

Magpies are vermin and the reason you are allowed to trap/shoot them is because the secretery of state allows certain species to be trapped/shot.

[Henrietta]

It is ridiculous to call any creature vermin. Human activity is far more responsible for the demise of certain birds than magpies, so maybe humans are the biggest vermin of all. Nature operates on the "hawks and doves" principal, so the bird population will even out. Cuckoos, which are now on the endangered list, often lay their eggs in magpie nests.

[woodbodger]

I think the problem with magpies is that they have had a population explosion, due to our use of the motor car creating road kill for them so enabling them to survive even in a lean winter. Magpies favourite food is young chicks etc so increasing the decimation that man caused to the bird life of this country so it would seem that a sensible thinning out of the magpie population would greatly help our struggling wild bird population. I have personally seen magpies clear out a whole clutch of ducklings!

[Henrietta]

I agree that a certain area of the bird population is struggling but it isn't because of magpies. I can understand that it could be distressing to witness young birds being taken by them, but if magpies were responsible for the decimation of their numbers, then they would have been wiped out years ago. I have seen the remnants of birds in the wood, having been killed by a bird of prey, but it is just part of nature. Incidentally, I was lucky enough to see the bird in question, as it was flying quite low in the ride of the wood as I was leaving. It really was one of the most amazing sights I have ever seen. I am no expert when it comes to identification but I came to the conclusion that it was a Goshawk because it was flying through the trees, but I have been told that it is highly unlikely to have been one.

[Henrietta]

On the subject of cuckoos laying their eggs in magpie nests, I read this astounding article. This was about Europe, and I don't know if it applies in Britain, but the magpies and cuckoos concerned are the same as here. Cuckoos lay their eggs in 60% of magpies nests. The magpies realise the egg isn't theirs, but the cuckoos form a sort of mafia, and if the magpie pushes the egg out, the cuckoos will destroy all the magpies eggs. The magpies therefore have to accept and raise the cuckoo if they don't want their own young killed.

[Darren]

I thought the cuckoo came out first and pushed out the other eggs.