The Black-billed Magpie 



Taken in Washington 



Photo by the Author 



NEST OF MAGPIE IN GREASEWOOD 



No. 5 



American Magpie 



A. O. U. No. 475. Pica pica hudsonia (Sabine). 



Synonym. — Black-billed Magpie 



Description. — Adults: Black and white; head and neck, breast, back, crissum, 

 thighs and upper tail coverts, axillars and lining of wings, glossy black with steely 

 purplish and bronzy green reflections; the throat with whitish shaft streaks; an elongated 

 scapular patch pure white; lower breast, upper abdomen, flanks and sides broadly 

 pure white; primaries extensively white on inner web; a broad band on rump with 

 large admixture of white; remainder of wings and tail black, their exposed upper sur- 

 faces with shiny metallic reflections, those of the wing chiefly greenish blue, those of 

 the tail bronzy green changing sub-terminally through purple and violet; tail narrowly 

 graduated through terminal three-fifths. Bill, bare orbital space, legs, and feet, black; 

 iris brown, surrounded by gray. Young birds lack iridescence on head and are else- 

 where duller, the throat marked with whitish shaft lines and outcropping of basal white; 

 relative length of tail sure index of age in juvenile specimens. Length of adults, 406.4- 



