Thanks for comments regarding Currawongs.

Now, I have to agree with others that Magpies are certainly
entertaining. With regard to feeding them or not - we have for 15
years so they must enjoy the food, and secondly it must be OK with them
as we tend to have 2 or 3 new birds each year, year in, year out.

I have read that magpies tend to form groups (or whatever the term may
be for a group of magpies? Lump of magpies :-) ? ) of 10, 20 etc. Ours,
tend to be just the male and female, who then around March / April
'drive' the latest brood away to make room for the new offsrping later
in the year.

Is this common? normal?

Thanks again

Tony
--
"The Gene Pool could use a little Chlorine"

G'day Tony

From what I've noticed by watching over many years they seem to turf
out the kids in readiness for the following brood. I liken it to the
kids leaving home as teenagers and able to stand on their own two feet
(and hopefully) make a go of life in general.

They are fun and great to have around, aren't they?

Bronwyn ;-)



Me wrote:
Thanks for comments regarding Currawongs.

Now, I have to agree with others that Magpies are certainly
entertaining. With regard to feeding them or not - we have for 15
years so they must enjoy the food, and secondly it must be OK with them
as we tend to have 2 or 3 new birds each year, year in, year out.

I have read that magpies tend to form groups (or whatever the term may
be for a group of magpies? Lump of magpies :-) ? ) of 10, 20 etc. Ours,
tend to be just the male and female, who then around March / April
'drive' the latest brood away to make room for the new offsrping later
in the year.

Is this common? normal?

Thanks again

Tony

"Me" wrote in message
news:1109908423.e0732cd6cab3ac7ad568ba247150a1fe@t eranews...


I have read that magpies tend to form groups (or whatever the term may
be for a group of magpies? Lump of magpies :-) ? )

Tiding of Magpies

- alternatively, a charm, a congregation, a flock, a gulp , a mischief, a
murder, a tittering, a tribe

Claude wrote:
"Me" wrote in message
news:1109908423.e0732cd6cab3ac7ad568ba247150a1fe@t eranews...



I have read that magpies tend to form groups (or whatever the term may
be for a group of magpies? Lump of magpies :-) ? )


Tiding of Magpies

- alternatively, a charm, a congregation, a flock, a gulp , a mischief, a
murder, a tittering, a tribe


Oz Magpies aren't related to the European or Old World Magpies that are
most closely related to the rooks and crows. Ours belong to the family
of Bell-Magpies (listen to their call) from the Southern Hemisphere. So,
ours occur in tribes. A tribe consists of a number of individuals led by
an alpha male and his wife(s) and some of this year's clutch. If tucker
is plentiful, then the tribe might be a very large one (maybe twenty or
thirty individuals), but if not (say, in drought), then the tribe may
only have six or eight members.

When a clutch is fledged, the members may or may not be 'allowed' to
join the tribe. If the tribe perceives there are enough members, then
the fledglings will be driven away (sometimes killed!) to find a new
territory. I once rescued a young magpie from this process and still
bear the scars on my arm from where he resisted my gentle attentions! I
had to teach him to fly, since he didn't know how! Eventually, I
released him to a tribe near my home and he did quite well.

--
Trish {|:-}
Newcastle, Australia

here in qld i have seen both scenerios when we lived in the south
western rural then now 'burbs, we had around 2 dozen magpies in the
brood whatever they all had their nests in the same group of trees,
there were squabbles but just the pecking order thingy.

here the families of magpies on our place (2) and the family next door
seem to have 3 adults at all times so they 'p' their young off when
the next season comes, they have border squabbles usually non-life
endangering but last year one of the alpha males from one of the
families on our block was killed in a scuffle, very quick it was so i
think it was accidental or a lucky blow so to speak. seems to me to be
an alpha male an alpha female and a beta male in each group, so when
an alpha male was killed by foxes after he broke a wing on electric
wires the second male stepped in but the beta spot was soon filled
from the next brrod i think.

in the burbs we only ever had 2 permanent birds. might be something to
do with gender or available habitat?

len

snipped
--
happy gardening
'it works for me it could work for you,'

"in the end ya' gotta do what ya' gotta do" but consider others and the environment
http://members.optusnet.com.au/~gardenlen1/

my e/mail addies have spam filters you should know what to delete before you send.

len gardener wrote:

in the burbs we only ever had 2 permanent birds. might be something to
do with gender or available habitat?

habitat usually. Depends on the size and pickings there in.

We seem, for the last few years, to have a permanent adult pair who can
successfully breed a pair each year, but we have 7kns of urban bushland
closeby. I am starting to find out that few of the neighbours have
anything but concrete and pools in their backyards.