Magpie – Intelligent Omens

The Eurasian magpie (Pica pica), known as snag breac in Irish; a clever bird shrouded in myth and mysticism. I grew up hearing the nursery rhyme I’m sure you all know:

One for sorrow,
Two for joy,
Three for a girl,
Four for a boy,
Five for silver,
Six for gold,
Seven for a secret that can never be told.

When the pandemic first began to ramp up in March of 2020 I was in my last year of college, working on my final coding project. I was confined to my room and frequently found myself staring out my window, at a view of my neighbours’ gardens. There was a large tree where a couple of magpies had staked their claim and begun building a nest. I watched them for weeks, coming and going with twigs and sticks, constructing this large dome-like home. Even when I wasn’t watching them, I could tell they were in the area from their familiar, chattering cries. I grew attached to them, invested in their endeavour, and hated the idea of them moving on after their chicks had left the nest.

These two magpies were my first real foray into birdwatching. I wondered if I could entice them to my windowsill with food and maybe befriend them. I did a little research into what they liked (dried mealworms are a good option, in case you want to try this at home) and started leaving out a small pile for them each day. It was a slow process; the birds didn’t know there was food there at first and it would often get blown away by wind. But still, I persevered, and ended up getting more than I bargained for. See, the magpies did eventually find their way to my windowsill, and so did their chicks (I’m assuming, I had no way of knowing). On a good day, there would be five magpies lined up pecking at my meagre offering. I was ecstatic at first – they knew there was food here so now I just had to convince them I was a friend!

But then they started waking me up at five in the morning.

Since the mealworms usually ended up staying on my windowsills overnight, the magpies had begun flying over for breakfast at dawn, and raucously complaining when they finished their free food. I felt bad ignoring them since it was my fault they had started coming over in the first place, but I really did not want to start my days that early. Unfortunately, I ended up moving out of that house pretty soon after they started visiting, so I didn’t have to resort to soundproofing my bedroom window. I still think of them from time to time, and wonder if the magpies I see flying around could be the same ones I once fed on my windowsill.

What I learned from my experience with those magpies is that they are extremely clever and curious birds. They are a member of the Corvid family, which also includes our hooded crows, rooks, and ravens, to name a few. Birds in this family usually display remarkable intelligence, with the magpies being the only ones to pass ‘the mirror test’ – when a mirror was held up in front of them, they recognised their own reflection. Speaking of mirrors, you may believe the myth that magpies like to purloin shiny trinkets. Recent reports may actually point to the opposite; it might be possible that our feathered friends have an aversion to these types of object, finding them novel and potentially dangerous.

The ‘thieving magpie’ rumour isn’t the only one that this bird falls victim to. Magpies have been believed to be bad omens for centuries; even the ancient Romans associated them with magic and fortune-telling. Different cultures all have variations on the ‘evil magpie’ myth, associating the bird with witches or the devil. Many of these beliefs are deeply rooted in religion, and so it is no surprise that they are prevalent in this country. Interestingly, magpies themselves are actually a relative newcomer to the island of Ireland, with English scholars noting their absense up until the late 17th century. As first-hand records state, a particularly strong gust of wind from the East blew a small flock of the birds over the Irish Sea one day and since then they have happily made themselves home here.

Their population has grown over the years, becoming the eighth most widespread bird species today according to BirdWatch Ireland. With so many magpies to potentially come across, we’ve created some solutions to avoid the supposed bad luck that they bring. If you keep the birds happy and show them respect, it’s believed that they will not impart any ill-omen onto you. So whenever you encounter a magpie, make sure to salute or greet them to show that you mean no harm!