Inside the Australian bird's yearly reign of terror: magpie swooping

Inside the Australian bird's yearly reign of terror: magpie swooping

Do not flee. Travel together. Wear sunglasses on the back of your head and carry an umbrella.

These are just a few of the gloomy cautions given in Australia each spring as magpies and people start their yearly territorial conflict.

The birds drop from above and attack from behind, turning parks and streets into a battlefield as they swoop down on anything they believe could endanger their young.

On the ground, people don their protective hats, which are typically plastic ice-cream containers, and take cover as they rule their kingdom from high up in their nests.

Their ambushes occasionally draw blood and can result in critical wounds and, in a few rare instances, fatalities.

However, according to specialists, people are the aggressors and magpies are misunderstood.

They also want you to realize that serenity is attainable.

clever birds

Magpies are possibly the most divisive bird in the nation.

Australian magpies are a protected native species and, to some, a treasured national symbol. They were given their name because of their resemblance to the Eurasian magpie, though they are not actually closely related to it.

As predators of numerous pests, they are critical to the ecosystems of the nation, and their lovely warble is a sound that is uniquely Australian.

They are also very intelligent, so intelligent that they have even been observed helping one another remove scientific tracking devices, and they have been observed forming deep, lasting relationships with people.

One Sydney family even attributes Penguin, a rescued chick, with aiding them in recovering from a horrific catastrophe; this heartwarming story gained international attention and has now been made into a best-selling book and a movie.

A family was saved by a magpie.

Found in large numbers throughout the nation, magpies have such a devoted following that in a 2017 survey they were named Australia's favorite bird, and two Australian communities have built enormous shrines in their honor.

However, a large number of people find it difficult to get past their divebombing antics.

Many people would be terrified by the sound of wings fluttering, the shine of a sharp beak in the sun, and the flash of their reddish-brown eyes.

Tione Zylstra says, "I'm really scared.

A magpie keeps watch over the 21-year-old's neighborhood railway station and regularly targets her head during breeding season.

They are silent assassins. I'll just watch while the shadow cast over my head becomes larger and larger.

"I have asthma, therefore I would have to race away from this magpie while having an asthma attack on the train.

I'm not sure why it detested me, but it did... I swear I've never done anything wrong.

When magpies swoop, why?

Australians are used to swooping birds, including kookaburras, noisy miners, and plovers.

However, magpies are regarded as the pinnacle "swoopy boy," and most individuals have a tale to tell.

However, only a very small percentage of male magpies engage in the behavior, and when they do, it's to defend their nests from August through November, when they're breeding.

They do not swoop unprompted, according to experts.

However, they also claim that magpies are able to recognize individual faces and not only do they interpret small actions like rushing through their territory as an insult, but they also have a tendency to harbor resentment.

Animal behaviorist and Emeritus Professor Gisela Kaplan, who published the book on magpies, adds, "Let's say you've shown some kind of response by waving your arms around or trying to hit the bird away from you."

"That action amounts to a declaration of war. A magpie will swoop that person every year from that point forward after interpreting that as an aggressive gesture.

And in their rage or worry, someone with a similar build, height, and hair color could be misconstrued.

Additionally, because they don't trust them, they have been known to preemptively target children and cyclists. According to Prof. Kaplan, children are "less reasonable and may be a greater risk" than cyclists because they are "less reasonable" and "less likely to be a threat."

Most victims of magpie attacks only sustain cuts or scratches.

However, they have been known to blind others; in the past two weeks, a cyclist who was the victim of a series of dive bombings made headlines after admitting that he required extensive surgery and a prosthetic eye glass.

Christiaan Nyssen remarked, "This bird turned around and went straight to the eye, did a backflip and hit me right in the eye again."

In 2021, a mother tripped while attempting to avoid a magpie, killing the child, which terrified the nation.

In 2010, a 12-year-old child was struck and killed by a car while escaping an oncoming magpie, just as an elderly man had died from head injuries two years before after colliding with his bicycle.

However, fatalities and serious injuries are uncommon. Human hostility toward birds is significantly more typical.

A Victorian man was fined in May after murdering four magpies and critically hurting two more, who had to be put to sleep. And practically yearly, wildlife inspectors report finding birds that have been poisoned, mutilated, shot with rifles, set on fire, chained, or pierced with arrows.

Authorities occasionally kill "problem" birds as well, and in 2021 one Sydney council exterminated all of the birds as a result of a string of occurrences.

Ways to achieve peace

According to experts in animal behavior, the magpie is misunderstood and shouldn't be hurt. The danger comes from our dread of them and how we react to it.

Yes, a small percentage of "rogue" birds have turned violent and radicalized as a result of their encounters with humans, according to Prof. Kaplan. They must be "treated firmly."

She asserts that the vast majority of magpies are sensible creatures.

Avoiding them is the best course of action. Authorities frequently install signs alerting the public to the presence of magpies, and some states have even introduced applications to monitor nest sightings.

Experts advise against running or fighting back if you are attacked. Get off your bike if you're riding one. Keep your cool and move past the area quickly. Take cover under an umbrella or sling your bag over your shoulders.

Additionally advised is the usage of safety equipment like magpie helmets and sunglasses.

They have typically been a helmet linked with zip ties or a plastic ice-cream container with eyes drawn or taped on. But they have grown more complex in recent years. For instance, devices that are outfitted with party poppers or a fake magpie.

If everything else fails, ask for forgiveness. Prof. Kaplan proposes providing a peace offering, such as a little piece of bread or meat, to appease the magpies, even though officials typically advise against feeding wild birds.

Magpies are friendly, so you can be too. They frequently exhibit great diplomacy, she claims.

That idea makes Ms. Zylstra laugh: Specifically, how, particularly while they are swooping you?

She does, however, concur that people should learn to coexist in a careful peace with birds and that they should not harm them.

Despite the fact that I dislike them, they shouldn't perish simply for defending their eggs.

In addition, she claims that magpie attacks are a rite of passage that help create character.

"If you haven't been snatched by a magpie, are you really Australian?"