Bird Guide

Eurasian Magpie vs Yellow-billed Magpie

Eurasian Magpie (Pica pica)

Eurasian Magpie

Pica pica

Medium217 gUrban

The adult male of the nominate subspecies, P. p. pica, is 44–46 cm (17–18 in) in length, more than half of which is the tail. Its wingspan is 52–62 cm (20–24 in). The head, neck, breast and vent are glossy black with a metallic green and violet sheen; the belly and scapulars (shoulder feathers) are pure white; the wings are black glossed with green or purple, and the primaries have white inner webs, conspicuous when the wing is open. The graduated tail is black, glossed with green and reddish purple. The legs and bill are black; the iris is dark brown.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Sonogram of the Eurasian Magpie
Recorded by Philippe_Grange · Aberrant · Arrondissement de la Roche-sur-Yon (near La Roche-sur-Yon), Vendée, Pays de la Loire, France · CC0
Photo: Andrew Cunnington · CC0
Yellow-billed Magpie (Pica nuttallii)

Yellow-billed Magpie

Pica nuttallii

It is a medium-sized corvid, at 43–54 centimeters (17–21 in) long averaging slightly smaller than the black-billed magpie's 45–60 cm (18–24 in) but overlapping with it. Like other magpies in the genus Pica, it has pied plumage, with black head, back, wings, and tail, and white belly and shoulders. The black feathering, particularly the tail and wing feathers, are glossed iridescent in good light, reflecting variably green, blue, purple, or bronzed, depending on the angle of the light.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: unknown · CC BY 2.5

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Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Eurasian Magpie and Yellow-billed Magpie.